Americans’ confidence in the safety of the food sold at most grocery stores has fallen to the lowest level Gallup has ever recorded, according to a new Gallup poll. Just 65% of U.S. adults now say they are very or somewhat confident that grocery store food is safe to eat, down from 73% last year and 72% in 2024, and well below the 81% recorded in 2019. It is the first time the figure has dropped below 70%.
The survey also found that confidence in the federal government’s ability to ensure food safety has hit a new low, with fewer than half of Americans expressing trust in official oversight. The findings come after a year marked by a major U.S. cyclospora outbreak and a wave of food recalls that pushed record numbers of shoppers to avoid certain products.
Confidence in grocery food safety hits new low
The 16-percentage-point decline since 2019 reflects drops in both the “very confident” group, which fell from 31% to 23%, and the “somewhat confident” group, from 50% to 42%. Meanwhile, the share of Americans who are “not too confident” or “not at all confident” has risen from 18% to 34%, Gallup reported.
Gallup conducted this year’s survey as a major U.S. cyclospora outbreak that began in June was waning and officially ended on Sept. 11. The outbreak was the largest recorded cyclospora outbreak in U.S. history, sickening more than 12,000 people across 21 states. The 2024 reading came amid numerous food recalls and serious illnesses linked to contaminated produce and other foods.
In a first for Gallup, the poll also measured confidence in restaurant food safety. About two-thirds of Americans said they are very (20%) or somewhat (46%) confident that food at most restaurants is safe to eat, while 33% said they are not too or not at all confident — a rating closely in line with how they rate grocery food.
Trust in government oversight also at a record low
Alongside the decline in grocery food confidence, Americans have grown less confident in the federal government’s ability to ensure the safety of the U.S. food supply. Currently, 47% of U.S. adults say they have a great deal (11%) or a fair amount (36%) of confidence in the federal government on food safety — a record low. That is down from 53% last year and 68% in 2019, and far below the 2004 high of 85%.
For the first time, a majority of Americans — 53% — say they have not much (32%) or no confidence at all (21%) in the government’s ability to keep the food supply safe. The decline spans party lines differently: confidence among Democrats has fallen sharply while Republican confidence has risen, widening the partisan gap. Gallup notes the divide has grown over the past two years, while consumer behaviors such as avoiding recalled foods have risen across all party groups alike.
FAKTA
- 65% of Americans are confident grocery store food is safe — the lowest level Gallup has recorded, and the first reading below 70%.
- 47% are confident in the federal government’s ability to ensure food safety — also a record low, down from 68% in 2019.
- 73% avoided purchasing certain brands or types of food after a recall or advisory in the past year, up 20 points from 53% in 2024.
- 45% threw out or returned a food product, and 42% worried something they ate may have been contaminated — both trend highs.
- The poll followed the largest recorded U.S. cyclospora outbreak, which sickened more than 12,000 people across 21 states before ending Sept. 11.
More Americans acting on food safety warnings
The poll updated a question asking Americans whether they had taken each of three steps in the past year in response to a government food safety advisory or product recall. The most common response — avoiding purchasing certain brands or types of food — was reported by 73% of U.S. adults, up from 53% in 2024 and exceeding the levels seen in 2007 (62%) and 2008 (60%), when significant food safety issues were in the news.
Additionally, 45% said they had thrown out or returned a food product to the store in the past year, up from 37% in 2024. A trend-high 42%, up from 26% in 2024, said they had worried that something they ate may have been contaminated. Food Safety News and other food-safety outlets have tracked the same long decline in consumer trust over the past year.
| Measure | 2024 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Confident grocery store food is safe | 72% | 65% |
| Confident in government food safety oversight | 53% | 47% |
| Avoided certain foods after a recall | 53% | 73% |
| Threw out or returned a food product | 37% | 45% |
| Worried something eaten was contaminated | 26% | 42% |
Readers looking for background on the outbreak behind this year’s reading can see Watan News’s earlier coverage of the FDA’s investigation into the cyclospora lettuce outbreak.
Conclusion
Gallup’s bottom line is stark: confidence in both grocery food safety and the federal government’s ability to ensure it are at new lows, while more Americans than at any point in the polling trends say they have changed what they buy, thrown food away or worried about contamination because of recalls. Gallup notes this is not the first time food scares have coincided with lower trust — confidence in oversight fell during the E. coli and salmonella outbreaks of 2007–2008 and has never recovered to its earlier levels.
