Rising temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, and extreme weather events have impacts beyond the environment. It also impacts food safety risks throughout the EU food chain, from the prevalence of various food-poisoning bacteria to the appearance of specific toxins in crops.
To commemorate World Food Safety Day on 7 June, the EU-funded HOLiFOOD project is launching a digital campaign by six European influencers to help consumers better understand how climate change may affect food safety and how science can support early detection and prevention of emerging risks.
Launching on Instagram and YouTube in mid-June 2026, the campaign brings together scientists, food safety experts and digital creators from France, Germany, Hungary, Italy and the UK, and will be viewed by more than 600,000 total followers across Europe.
Through short videos, explainers, myth-busting posts, and lifestyle-oriented content, creators translate complex food safety science into messages that are accessible to audiences who don’t typically engage with institutional or scientific channels. This campaign explores questions such as:
- How climate change will impact food safety risks across the food chain.
- Why do dangers such as Salmonella and Campylobacter become more likely to occur as temperatures rise?
- How extreme weather can increase toxins in crops.
- How researchers are developing new tools to better detect and predict emerging risks.
The selected countries and languages also reflect the project’s ambition to reach audiences across Europe’s diverse food cultures and digital ecosystems, where concerns, habits and conversations about food safety can vary widely.
The six featured creators are French science communicator The French Virologist, Hungarian nutritionist Diet_etikus, British food safety educator Food Safety Mum, German nutritionist foodbert.de, Scottish/Indian food influencer Hey_renu, and Italian sustainability creator Daria al Naturale. The initiative also responds to growing concerns about food, health and climate misinformation circulating online, especially on platforms where younger audiences are increasingly receiving science-related information.
As a scientist trained in food safety, I find it particularly encouraging that leading researchers from across Europe are collaborating through EU-funded initiatives. Public funds are being invested wisely to better predict, detect and mitigate emerging food risks that affect all households. At the same time, it is essential to help people understand how climate change is impacting food safety, from the emergence of new hazards to changing contamination patterns. This is why we decided to work with influencers to transform complex scientific evidence into engaging, accessible content and reach audiences who might not normally engage with food safety research. ”
Frèdèric Bayer, Content Manager, EUFIC
The campaign is being coordinated by the European Food Information Council (EUFIC) as part of the HOLiFOOD project, an EU-funded research initiative to develop new approaches to detect, monitor and predict emerging food safety risks, including AI-assisted data analysis, metagenomics and portable detection tools.
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EUFIC – European Food Information Council
