Food Standards Agency Scotland publishes Consumer Attitudes to Food survey 2003

Tuesday 24 February 2004

Ref: 08/2004

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) today published its Scottish survey of Consumer Attitudes to Food.

The annual survey highlights a number of trends and key findings.

These include:

• Scots are increasingly aware that they should be eating five portions of fruit and vegetables a day (48% in 2000; 49% in 2001; 56% in 2002; 69% 2003)
• A significant increase in the number of Scottish consumers correctly saying that we should eat less salt in our food (45% in 2002; 60% in 2003)
• A rise in consumers identifying the Food Standards Agency Scotland as an organisation they could trust (49% in 2001; 56% in 2002; 61% in 2003)
• Decrease in the number of consumers that feel food safety is a lot worse (6% in 2000; 6% in 2001; 3% in 2002; 2% in 2003)
• Over half of those asked expressed a concern about hygiene in catering outlets – an increase on the previous year (45% in 2002; 51% in 2003)

Summary findings from the Scottish consumer attitudes survey with comparisons to UK wide results:

Food labelling

• 74% of Scottish consumers claimed to check food labels - of these 30% always, 27% usually and 17% occasionally. Compared to 78% in the UK survey (31% always, 26% usually and 21% occasionally)
• 62% of consumers in Scotland and 60% in UK found information on food labelling easy to understand. Scotland: 18% of consumers found some food labels ‘fairly difficult’ and 5% found some ‘very difficult’ compared to one in five and one in 20 in the UK survey respectively.
• 41% of UK consumers (38% in Scotland) are concerned about the accuracy of food labelling compared to around 33% in previous years.
• 57% percent of Scottish consumers are concerned about the accuracy of health claims compared to 52% of UK consumers. In Scotland the majority, 53% of those were fairly concerned rather than very concerned (24%). In the UK the majority of concerned consumers (58%) were 'fairly' rather than 'very concerned';

Food safety

• Year-on-year decrease in the number of Scottish consumers that feel that food safety is 'a lot' worse (6% in 2000, 6% in 2001, 3% in 2002 and 2% in 2003) compared to 6% in 2000, 5% in 2001, 4% in 2002, 4% in 2003 UK-wide.
• Level of concern about GM foods in Scotland remains similar to the past two years - 36% expressed concern in 2003, compared to 40% in 2000. The UK survey showed 38% of consumers expressed concern in 2003, compared to 43% in 2000.
• Increase in the number of Scottish consumers who expressed concern over ready made meals – up to 14% in 2003 from 10% in 2002 as compared to 17% in UK 2003 from 13% in 2002.
• Scottish consumers were concerned about the amount of fat (47%) salt (47%) and sugar (41%) in food, compared to UK survey results - fat (53%) salt (50%) and sugar (47%) in food, with these concerns affecting claimed eating habits.

Shopping and eating habits

• 39% of Scottish consumers shop once a week, 98% of them in supermarkets. UK result showed around 50% of consumers shop about once a week and as in previous years most food shopping is done at supermarkets, with 95% of consumers opting for these over local shops and other sources.
• 62% of Scottish respondents said they ‘quite’ or ‘really’ enjoyed cooking and 36% cooked meals from raw or fresh ingredients once a day. UK results showed just over six out of ten respondents claimed to enjoy cooking but only 39% cook meals from raw or fresh ingredients once a day.
• Almost half (49%) of those interviewed in Scotland sit down with household members once a day for their main meal, with only 3% doing this once a day with friends or family who are not household members. UK results showed half of those interviewed claimed to sit down once a day for their main meal with all other household members and eating with people who are not household members is fairly infrequent.

Healthy eating and nutrition

• Awareness among Scottish consumers that we should eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day has risen – 69% from 48% in 2000. However, just over a quarter (27%) eat this daily recommended amount. UK results also showed an increase - up to 59% in 2003, from 43% in 2000 with 28% claiming to have eaten this the day before the interview, which remains at almost the same level as 2000 (26%).
• 40% of consumers in Scotland felt that they had changed their eating habits over the last year and were now eating more healthily compared to 37% UK-wide. Ninety percent of Scottish consumers (compared to 92% across the UK) also claimed to regularly/occasionally eat fresh vegetables/fruit/salad and around two-thirds (66%) in Scotland claimed to regularly/occasionally eat fish.
• A significant increase in the number of Scottish consumers saying that we should eat less salt in food 60% in 2003 from 45% in 2002 compared to 54% in 2003 from 51% in 2002.
• Decrease in the number of Scottish consumers claiming to regularly or occasionally eat ready-made-meals, 60% in 2003 from 64% in 2002 compared to UK results of 55% in 2003 down from 59% in 2002. There was also a significant decrease in the number of consumers that regularly/occasionally eat convenience foods, 66% in Scotland down from 69% in 2002 compared to UK results of 67% in 2003 down from 72% in 2002.

Food-borne disease

• 56% of Scots surveyed claimed to change their eating habits in 2003 as a result of increased concern of hygiene in catering establishments - with 80% no longer buying food from an outlet where they had concerns about hygiene (70% in UK)
• In Scotland there was a slight decrease in the number of consumers who believe they may have experienced a bout of diarrhoea/vomiting in the last 12 months – 14% in 2003 compared with 15% in 2001 and 2002. UK-wide there was a rise to 16% in 2003, compared with 13% in both 2000 and 2002.
• A year-on-year increase in consumer concern in Scotland about hygiene in mobile food outlets up to 24% from 22% in 2002 compared to UK results of 30% up from 26% in 2002.

Food Standards Agency Scotland (FSAS)

• Confidence in FSAS has increased to 65% from 55% in 2000.
• Awareness of the FSA in Scotland has doubled to 41% in 2003 compared with 20% in 2000)
• 86% of consumers who get information from the FSAS rated the Agency as providing very/fairly reliable information
• 61% of consumers rated the Agency in Scotland as an organisation they could trust, compared with 49% in 2001.
• 53% of consumers rated the FSAS as putting the consumer first - up from 46% in 2001.

Key differences across groups

• Women are more likely to be concerned about food safety (77% more concerned about food safety as compared to 62% of men)
• People between the ages of 16-25 and over 66 tend to be less concerned about food issues.

The 2003 UK survey highlights a number of key trends that have emerged since 2000 these include:

• A significant decline in consumer concern over BSE (down to 42% in 2003 from 61% in 2000 - a drop of 19%)
• A decline in consumer concern about the safety of meat - particularly raw meat (down to 63% in 2003 from 70% in 2000) and raw beef (down to 38% in 2003 from 53% in 2000)
• A year-on-year increase in the number of consumers who are aware that we should eat five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables each day (up from 43% in 2000 to 59% in 2003).
• Over one-third of consumers (37%) felt that they had changed their eating habits over the last year and were now eating more healthily, with only 6% believing that their diet was currently less healthy than a year ago.

Notes to Editors:

The survey was devised to help track any changes in consumer opinions about food, since the Agency was set up in April 2000. This helps the FSA improve its knowledge and understanding of consumer views; as well as to help gauge changes of public confidence in food safety.

This is the fourth year that the Agency's Consumer Attitudes to Food Survey has been running. The FSA will be publishing a new strategic plan for 2005-2010 later this year and the questions in future surveys will be revised to reflect that plan. However, boxline measures on perceptions of the FSA will remain unchanged.

The full copy of the report can be found attached below.

Research for the Consumer Attitudes to Food survey 2003 was carried out between 1 September and 14 October 2003 by Taylor Nelson Sofres for the Food Standards Agency. A total of 3,121 consumers.