ORLANDO, Fla. — Peter Wilson, partner and head of digital reputation EMEA at FleishmanHillard, began his presentation on AI at the International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show by asking attendees whether artificial intelligence is a force for good or evil. Most in the room indicated it was a force for good.
But, he says, “let’s see if you change your minds after this.”
“The end of truth is really upon us,” he says. “But hopefully we’ll get truth back again.”
The Shift in Truth and Algorithms
Instead of one single truth, Wilson says here are different iterations of truth.
After explaining the difference between disinformation (intentionally misleading information) and misinformation (misleading information shared without intent), Wilson said AI has added fuel to the fire.
“We’ve always lied,” he says, noting the most successful tabloids, medieval propaganda and campfire stories always had lies baked into them. “We’ve always liked lying. AI just made it easier to do.”
Now, with AI and modern-day social media, confirmation bias fuels the content shared.
“Confirmation bias essentially follows what you believe you want to hear,” he says.
While social media has made confirmation bias and algorithms more powerful, Wilson cautioned, “let’s stop thinking about algorithms as pioneers of hate.”
Wilson says, “algorithms just confirm what we’ve always known, that people follow what they want to follow.”
Why Fresh Produce is Vulnerable to AI Scams
In the context of social media, however, AI brings scale: more tweets, more posts, and more credible-looking videos. Wilson warned that fresh produce is particularly vulnerable to this threat.
“Food is the perfect target because it appeals to all of our insecurities,” he says.
In the context of social media, however, AI brings scale: more tweets, more posts, and more credible-looking videos. Wilson warned that fresh produce is particularly vulnerable to this threat.
As an example, Wilson noted that 73% of UK respondents could not tell a real pizza apart from an AI-generated image. It is relatively easy for a consumer to generate a fake image of damaged or expired produce and contact a vendor for a fraudulent refund.
“That is really taking off in the UK right now,” Wilson says. “There is a big rise in fraudulent refund claims for fast food in the UK.”
Currently, he added, there are more than 34 million images created daily using AI platforms.
“There’s no law in the UK that bans that sort of activity,” he says.
Strategic Defense: Prebunk, Mobilize, Respond
To stay ahead of misinformation, Wilson outlined a three-part strategy: “prebunk,” mobilize, and respond.
He encourages produce businesses to monitor the specific questions being asked about the brand or business, noting that AI tools are effective for this type of listening.
“What that will do is tell you everything being talked about with your brand in the dark web, in the real web today,” he says. “If you’re not answering questions, someone else is and there will always be somebody who wants to take you down.”
Wilson emphasized that traditional digital strategy is no longer enough because consumer search habits have fundamentally shifted. Rather than clicking through to official brand websites, consumers now rely on direct answers generated by AI assistants and social platforms, making AI Engine Optimization (AEO) critical for reputation control.
“Something like 82% of journeys online now never go through to a website,” he says AI-generated search results. “You need to be in that space answering those questions.”
Next is mobilization, where key stakeholders, such as trade bodies, growers, content creators, and scientists, lend credible voices to counter mis- and disinformation.
“They’re all potential advocates for you and your business,” he says. “They could be on social media defending your brand and sector every day because they have a horse in the race. Their industry, their jobs, their lives depend on the whole sector staying healthy.”
If an issue escalates, it becomes time to respond. However, Wilson cautions businesses not to respond to every instance of misinformation or disinformation.
“You can make a situation worse,” he says, noting that attempting to debunk every claim can sometimes make a business appear less credible or trustworthy.
Instead, it is critical to contact the source of the misinformation directly, via direct message or email, to understand the motivation behind the campaign.
Ask the source, “What’s going on? Why are you doing this?” he says. “But if you actually start publishing stuff, it could be used against you guys.”
Managing Public Trust and Uncertainty
Wilson says that public trust in information is nearly at its lowest.
“We don’t know where to go to for our news,” he says. “We are at this point now where we are towards the trough on this uncertainty curve and it’s really scary.”
He notes the European Union is currently the primary governing body attempting to regulate AI, though he expects more nations to follow suit.
And while he says it may seem bleak, “Misunderstanding is a freedom.”
“You’ve got lots of information in your domain,” he says. “You’ve got information on your social channels, on TV, on the radio, but it’s lots of information. ... It’s a privilege of democratic societies that you have lots of information. It’s up to you to scrutinize it.”
He says it’s up to regulators to help scrutinize it.
“No information is worse than misinformation,” he says. “Because in some societies today, there is no information. There’s only one source of information and it’s not the truth.”
