Fake tweet on vaccines in food supply attributed to Gates

CLAIM: Bill Gates tweeted in support of adding vaccines to the food supply to solve “the problem of vaccine hesitancy.”

AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. The image of the tweet was fabricated. It was published as part of an illustration for a video and article by NewsPunch, a site known for spreading false news. No such tweet was sent from Gates’ official account, a spokesperson from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation confirmed.

THE FACTS: The screenshot, shared across social media in recent days, shows a tweet that appears to have been sent by Gates, using the same profile picture and username on his verified account.

“Vaccines in our food supply solves the problem of vaccine hesitancy,” the tweet reads.

Social media users on Instagram have posted the screenshot as part of a meme, above a photo of Bill Cosby and a caption crudely comparing vaccination to date rape.

Other users shared the fake image as part of a composite image, next to a smiling Gates and a photo of test tubes.

“For the love of God, can Republicans form a committee to investigate Bill Gates and what the hell is going in our food. This isn’t a conspiracy. This is actually happening,” reads the tweet from Jan. 12 with more than 2,000 likes.

However, no such tweet can be found on Gates’ official Twitter account nor did it appear on PolitiTweet, which maintains an archive of deleted tweets from public figures.

A spokesperson from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation confirmed with The Associated Press that the tweet was fake.

The image was used to illustrate a NewsPunch story headlined, “Gates Vows To Pump mRNA Into Food Supply To ‘Force-Jab’ the Unvaccinated.” It was also used with a video on the same topic.

The NewsPunch video and article cite a clip of Gates discussing a partnership between the Gates Foundation and the U.K. agency then known as the Department for International Development.

“The Gates Foundation has partnered with DFID on a great number of things and, among those, are work we do together on livestock,” Gates says in the video, posted to Twitter in 2018. “Helping animals survive either by having vaccines or better genetics, helping them be more productive. It’s making a big difference.” Gates says nothing about trying to “force-jab” people.

A disclaimer under NewsPunch’s terms of use states that its content may not be accurate or reliable. The site has published numerous stories based on conspiracy theories and has promoted fabricated information and quotes in the past.

NewsPunch did not respond to the AP’s request for comment.

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This is part of AP’s effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.