Brussels, 28 September 2026 — A food label says one thing, an online source says another, and expert advice can add yet another layer. Europeans have more food information at their fingertips than ever, but deciding what and who to believe remains difficult. New research from the EIT Food Consumer Observatory, published on the International Day for Universal Access to Information on 28 September, finds that consumers are becoming more confident in their own food choices even as scepticism about the information surrounding those choices remains widespread.

The new report, Who do consumers believe?, is the fourth and final chapter of the EIT Food Consumer Observatory’s 2026 Trust Report Series. Based on responses from around 20,000 consumers across 18 European countries, it examines how confident Europeans feel about their food choices, what they believe they know about healthy and sustainable diets, how well they feel able to distinguish reliable information, and which sources they trust for guidance. EIT Food is supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union.

One of its clearest findings is a growing gap between confidence in making the right choices and confidence in the information around us. The share of Europeans who feel able to make good food choices rose from 60% in 2024 to 66% in 2025. Yet fewer than half consider food information itself reliable. At the same time, consumers are becoming more confident in their own ability to separate reliable information from unreliable information, and 53% say they know where to find sources they can trust.

The picture also changes depending on the topic. Europeans feel much more confident navigating health than sustainability. Nearly three-quarters – 72% – feel their knowledge of healthy diets sufficient, and 62% say they can judge how healthy a food is. For sustainability, those figures fall to 52% and 47%, respectively.

“Consumers do not appear to be asking simply for more information. They need information they can understand, assess and trust,” says Klaus G. Grunert, Professor of Marketing at Aarhus University and Lead of the EIT Food Consumer Observatory. “The findings show that confidence in our own choices can grow even while confidence in the information environment remains fragile — addressing these gaps will require clearer, evidence-based and coordinated communication on food, particularly around sustainability, where consumers report the greatest uncertainty.”

Age adds another layer. Consumers aged 55+ are the most confident in their food choices, with 70% feeling positive about the choices they make, compared with 62% of consumers under 35. Yet older consumers are less confident when it comes specifically to sustainability: fewer than half of those aged 55+ feel sufficiently knowledgeable about the sustainability of food.

Trust in the wider food system appears closely linked to how informed people feel. Among consumers with low trust, only 37% feel able to determine the sustainability of food, compared with 65% among consumers with higher trust. The findings suggest that access to information alone may not be enough if consumers do not have confidence in the people and institutions providing it.

Who do Europeans believe?

The challenge extends to the organisations consumers encounter across the food system. Even farmers, who are the most trusted actors in the food chain overall, are not widely regarded as reliable sources of health and sustainability information. Trust in farmers as an information source fell from 49% in 2024 to 46% in 2025, while manufacturers declined from 41% to 39%. Fewer than one-third of consumers consider retailers, public authorities, restaurants and caterers reliable sources of this type of guidance.

Instead, consumers place greater confidence in doctors, health practitioners, scientists and academics. But even here, the results give reason for attention: the report finds trust in these sources is declining too. Traditional and online media face greater scepticism, while online influencers are among the least trusted sources.

Who do consumers believe? concludes the EIT Food Consumer Observatory’s 2026 Trust Report Series, which has explored what Europeans eat and want to change, how trust is evolving across the food system, how trust shapes openness to food innovation, and now how knowledge and information credibility influence food choices.

ENDS