Global Public Opinion Insights
Global insights into how food system sectors are perceived in fulfilling their responsibilities to society.
The food system touches people’s daily lives more directly than almost any other sector. As a result, companies across agriculture, food production, and packaged foods are held to especially high expectations, not only around affordability and quality, but also health, environmental impact, and social responsibility.
This latest edition of GlobeScan’s long‑running societal reputation research examines how key food system sectors, such as agriculture and farming companies, food companies, and packaged foods and snacks companies, are perceived across 33 global markets. It explores where societal reputation is strongest, where momentum has weakened since the pandemic, and how regional and generational dynamics are reshaping trust across the food system.
Key insights include:
- Agriculture and farming companies are emerging as global reputation leaders. Agriculture and farming companies significantly outperform most sectors on societal reputation and continue to gain momentum, ranking among the strongest sectors globally in fulfilling responsibilities to society. This positions agriculture as a critical reputational anchor for the broader food system.
- Food companies retain long‑term strength, but momentum has softened. Food companies have outperformed most sectors for more than two decades, yet positive perceptions have moderated since peaking during the pandemic in 2020. Reputation can no longer be assumed, particularly in mature Western markets where expectations are higher, and trust is more fragile.
- Packaged foods and snacks face a structural reputation deficit. Across most markets, packaged foods and snacks companies underperform on societal reputation, despite pockets of improvement in parts of Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. By taking visible, differentiated action on health, transparency, and responsibility, food companies have a clear path to rebuilding trust.
- Reputation varies sharply by region. Food system sectors enjoy their strongest reputational standing in emerging markets, while perceptions are consistently weaker across much of Europe and other mature economies. This highlights the need for geographically differentiated reputation and engagement strategies.
- Younger generations are more positive than older cohorts. Gen Z, followed by Millennials, consistently hold more favorable views of agriculture, food, and packaged foods/snacks companies than older age groups. As younger generations gain influence, aligning products, practices, and narratives with their expectations presents a significant long‑term trust opportunity.
