Patti Truant Anderson: Polling and the Surprising Results Around What People Really Think About the Food System

Species Unite

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“Do people even want to know about some of these issues? Because I think some of the meat production concerns, it's kind of like people would rather in some cases, I think some people might not really want to know all the nitty gritty. They don't want to know how the sausage is made. That poses an interesting question and challenge about how you communicate about some of these issues, when maybe there's a resistance among a subset of people who don't want to know more.” - Patti Truant Anderson

Today’s episode is the final installment in our special four-part series where we take a deep dive into the food system with experts from the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future.

Our guest is Patti Truant Anderson, a senior program officer at the Center and a faculty associate in the Department of Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Patti’s work focuses on public health risks, environmental challenges tied to food production, and how to communicate these critical issues more effectively.

Patti and I explore how polling helps uncover public perceptions around food systems and why the country isn’t as polarized on these issues as we might think. We also talk about the challenge of engaging people who may resist learning about the harsh realities of our food system.

This episode is not just about data—it’s about how we can foster a shared understanding and move forward, even in times of deep political division.

Links:

Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future - https://clf.jhsph.edu/

Patti Truant Anderson - https://clf.jhsph.edu/about-us/staff/patti-truant-anderson