Abstracts (PDF file, 1.8MB) - Society for Risk Analysis

SRA 2013 Annual Meeting Abstracts
T4-G.3 Kuttschreuter, M.*; Hilverda, M.D.; Pieniak, Z.;
Department Psychology of Conflict, Risk and Safety, University
of Twente; margot.kuttschreuter@utwente.nl
Actively seeking versus taking notice of risk information:
the case of food risks
Food safety incidents in the Western world still take lives.
Examples are the contamination of cantaloupes with Listeria in
the US and that of fenugreek seeds with the EHEC-bacterium in
Europe. Such incidents typically lead to anxiety among
consumers, a need for additional information and potentially
information seeking behaviour. How these processes function
precisely, is yet unknown. This presentation focuses on the
applicability of the Risk Information Seeking and Processing
(RISP) model to food risks, and on the channels that consumers
use to find relevant information. Building on prior research, the
RISP-model was refined and a distinction was made between
two modes of information seeking: taking notice of information
that one encounters accidentally versus actively taking steps to
search and find additional information. Data were gathered
through a cross-sectional survey that was carried out in 8
different European countries as part of the FoodRisC-project
(n= 6400). This survey focused on the responses to the risks of
fresh vegetables. Participants were questioned regarding their
information seeking behaviour and a number of potential
determinants such as risk perception and trust in the safety of
food products. Their use of information channels such as
traditional mass media, internet resources and social media
was also measured. Television and search engines as Google
were found to be the channels most often used to learn more
about the risks involved. Taking notice of risk information and
actively taking steps to learn more were indeed distinct forms
of information seeking behaviour (r = .61). Regression analysis
showed that there were differences as well as similarities in the
determinants of both modes of information seeking. Structural
equation modelling has been applied to test a model, describing
the determinants of both modes of information seeking, using
AMOS. Results will be presented and the consequences for risk
communication will be discussed.
W4-F.1 Kuzma, J; NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSITY;
jenniferkuzma0@gmail.com
Global Risk Governance for Genome Editing
Recently the field of biotechnology has been revolutionized with
the introduction of promising new technologies, which can be
collectively called “targeted genetic modification techniques”
(TagMo). Unlike traditional genetic engineering technologies,
which introduced changes in genomes randomly, these new
methods allow scientists to modify DNA sequences at precise
locations. These new technologies are revolutionizing
biotechnology by making the engineering process for plants,
animals, mammals, and bacteria faster and allowing multiple
site-directed modifications to organisms in a short period of
time. These TagMo methods have collectively been referred to
as “genome-scale engineering”, “genome editing,” or “genomic
rewriting.” They represent a transition between old
recombinant DNA (rDNA) genetic engineering and synthetic
biology. In turn, they present significant governance
challenges, including ambiguity in what the potential risk
analysis issues are and whether existing regulatory definitions
and systems can accommodate the rapid changes in these
technologies. In this paper, first the landscape of the genome
editing field will be explored by using "tech mining" techniques
based on bibliometric analysis of a key set of articles from the
Web of Science. This analysis will help to lay the groundwork
for discussions of particular sub-fields of TagMo and associated
risk assessment issues including gene flow, gene stability &
migration, and their off-target impacts. A subset of the
literature on the stability and specificity of genomic insertions,
deletions, or edits using TagMo will be reviewed. Then, select
models for risk analysis of the first generation of products of
genetic modification will be evaluated for their appropriateness
for emerging products of TagMo based on findings from an
expert-stakeholder interview process, workshop, and existing
literature. Finally, the state of risk governance for genome
editing in three key regions of development—the U.S., EU, and
Japan—will be examined in a comparative policy analysis
approach.
T1-A.8 Lachlan, KA*; Spence, PR; Lin, X; University of
Massachusetts Boston (Lachlan), University of Kentucky
(Spence & Lin); ken.lachlan@umb.edu
Getting Information to Underserved Communities using
Twitter: Lessons from Hurricane Sandy
With its capability for real time updating and reports from the
scenes of accidents and disasters, Twitter has emerged as a
medium that may be especially useful for emergency managers
communicating the risks associated with impending events. Yet,
little is known about the ways in which Twitter is being utilized
during widespread disasters, or the ways in which government
agencies are using Twitter in reaching at risk populations.
Given past research suggesting that members of underserved
communities may be especially at risk during crisis and natural
disasters, this is especially problematic. The current study
involves an automated content analysis of over 20,000 tweets
collected in the days leading up to the landfall of Hurricane
Sandy, and a human coder subsample of 1785 tweets that were
evaluated in greater depth. Tweets containing the hashtag
#sandy were examined, since this was the official hashtag used
by the National Weather Service in their communication efforts.
Tweets were collected in four hour intervals over the course of
four days. The results indicate that in the days leading up to
landfall, risk information became less prevalent and
expressions of negative affect became more common. Tweets
from relief agencies and emergency managers were all but
absent in the sea of information. Tweets in languages other
than English were largely absent during the developing stages
of the crisis, and very few of these contained actionable
information. The results are discussed in terms of best
practices for emergency managers in conveying risk
information to historically underserved communities.
T1-D.3 Lambertini, E*; Buchanan, RL; Narrod, C; Pradhan, AK;
University of Maryland, Joint Institute for Food Safety and
Applied Nutrition; elilam@umd.edu
Zoonotic diseases from companion animals: risk of
salmonellosis associated with pet food
Recent Salmonella outbreaks associated with dry pet food
highlight the importance of these foods as vehicles for zoonotic
pathogens. The need to characterize the risk profile of this class
of products is currently not supported by data. Moreover, the
relative impact of industry practices and household behavior in
mitigating risk is unknown. This study aims to: 1) model the
microbial ecology of Salmonella in the dry pet food production
chain, 2) estimate pet and human exposure to Salmonella
through pet food, and 3) assess the impact of mitigation
strategies on human illness risk. Data on Salmonella
contamination levels in pet food ingredients, production
parameters, bacterial ecology on food and surfaces, and
transfer by contact were obtained through a systematic
literature review and from industry data. A probabilistic
quantitative microbial risk assessment model was developed to
estimate exposure of pets and their owners to Salmonella in pet
food, and the associated illness risk. Model outcomes highlight
that human illness risk due to handling pet food is minimal if
contamination occurs before the heated extrusion step (10-15
CFU/Kg of food at the point of exposure, even with initial 1015
CFU/Kg in the protein meal ingredient). Risk increases
significantly if contamination occurs in coating fat, with mean
probability of illness per exposure Pill 1/1000 at mean
Salmonella levels of 107 CFU/Kg fat. In this case, an additional
post-coating 3-Log CFU reduction is needed to limit Pill to 10-6
(mean of 0.03 CFU/Kg in finished product). Recontamination
after extrusion and coating, e.g. via dust or condensate, can
lead to even higher risk (Pill 1/100 with mean Salmonella levels
of 0.4 CFU/Kg in intermediate product). In this scenario, hand
washing after handling food would reduce the Pill only by 30%.
The developed risk model provides a tool to estimate health
impacts under a range of production and household handling
scenarios. Model results provide a basis for improvements in
production processes, risk communication to consumers, and
regulatory action.
December 8-11, 2013 - Baltimore, MD