The public is involved in the assessment of different strategies for reducing food-related risks through perception studies that examine the social and cultural sustainability of these strategies. In this paper, we argue that this public involvement is based on the false assumption that ordinary people have an active perception of risk-reduction strategies. Thus, such studies run the risk of being futile or, in worst case, of providing a misleading image of public perception. We outline some theoretical and methodological issues that need to be addressed when members of the public are invited to take part in qualitative and quantitative perception studies.