Whom Do You Trust? Information Seeking During the U.K. Foot and Mouth Crisis

The 2001 U.K. foot and mouth disease (FMD) outbreak constituted the biggest crisis ever to affect the U.K. farming system. The crisis unfolded as a series of information and communication problems—primarily from government to farmers—with consequences for action in a time of crisis. This study explores how trust affected farmers’ information seeking and use during the FMD crisis. It attempts to answer questions such as what sources of information people trust in a crisis and which information providers people trust in a crisis. These are critical questions as, by acting upon trusted information, farmers could shape and influence the nature of the crisis.