Less than half of European consumers are confident in the food that they eat, while just over a third (36%) consider it to be sustainable, according to a new report by EIT Food.
The report, entitled The State of Trust in Europe’s Food System, found that trust in Europe‘s food system is starting to recover following a decline in 2023, however confidence remains uneven in different parts of the sector.
‘Trust is recovering’
“Trust is a fundamental condition for a well-functioning food system,” commented Klaus G. Grunert, professor of marketing at Aarhus University and lead of the EIT Food Consumer Observatory. “The results show that trust is recovering across Europe, but not evenly across all actors.
“Transparency, competence and care will be essential to close these gaps and support the transition towards healthier and more sustainable diets.”
Sector by sector
The report examined how public attitudes towards farmers, retailers, manufacturers, restaurants and public authorities have evolved between 2021 and 2025, and found that trust in all sectors has increased since 2023, when it reached a low point.
Farmers are the most trusted group in Europe’s food sector, with more than two thirds (68%) of respondents expressing trust in the farming industry as of last year. Restaurants and caterers also saw a notable increase in trust levels, from 48% to 53%, according to the data. Retailers had a trust level of 54%.
While they remain among the least trusted groups overall, manufacturers and public authorities have recovered from ‘historic lows’ in terms of trust, the data showed.
‘Despite these improvements, overall confidence in food remains limited,’ the report noted. ‘While consumers increasingly perceive food as healthier, safer and more authentic, fewer than half express confidence in food overall, and perceptions of sustainability remain particularly low. This disconnect underlines the importance of rebuilding trust not only in institutions, but in the food people consume every day.’
The findings are based on EIT Food’s TrustTracker study, which has been conducted annually since 2018. In 2025, nearly 20,000 consumers across 18 European countries participated in the survey, contributing to a dataset covering approximately 140,000 respondents over the past seven years. Read more here.
