Food and You 2: wave 11 key findings

PDF

View Food and You 2 Annual Report: Wave 11 (2025) as PDF(Open in a new window) (612.27 KB)

Food and You 2 is an annual official statistic survey commissioned by the Food Standards Agency (FSA). The survey measures consumers’ self-reported knowledge, attitudes and behaviours related to food safety and other food issues amongst adults, aged 16 or over, in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland. All content in this report applies to England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Findings for Scotland are reported separately by FSS⁽¹⁾.

Fieldwork for Food and You 2: wave 11 was conducted between 19th May 2025 and 7th August 2025. A total of 5,898 adults (aged 16 years and over) from 4,215 households  across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland completed the ‘push-to-web’ survey.

This report presents findings from Wave 11 and describes the key trends across Wave 1 (July–October 2020) to Wave 11 (May–August 2025). 

Food you can trust

Following declines in trust and confidence in the FSA and the wider food supply chain during Waves 7 to 9, levels went up again in Wave 10 and then stabilised in Wave 11. This reflects a broader upward trend across all trust measures. Wave 11 key findings on trust and confidence are summarised below:

Confidence in food safety and authenticity

• 94% of respondents reported that they were confident that the food they buy is safe to eat, and 86% were confident that the information on food labels is accurate

Confidence in the food supply chain

• 77% of respondents reported that they had confidence in the food supply chain

Trust and confidence in the FSA

• 79% of respondents, who had at least some knowledge of the FSA, reported that they trusted the FSA to do its job, to make sure ‘food is safe’ and ‘what it says it is’
• 83% of respondents reported that they were confident that the FSA (or the government agency responsible for food safety) can be relied upon to protect the public from food-related risks (such as food poisoning or allergic reactions from food), 78% were confident that the FSA is committed to communicating openly with the public about food-related risks and 81% were confident that the FSA takes appropriate action if a food-related risk is identified. 

Food hygiene when eating out

• The percentage of respondents who reported that they had heard of the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) and had knowledge about it (i.e., Yes, I've heard of it and know a lot / bit about it), notably increased from 47% in Wave 2 (November 2020 to January 2021) to 62% in Wave 11
• Around 9 in 10 (92%) respondents in Wave 11 reported having seen the food hygiene rating sticker before
• There was a notable increase in Wave 11 (55%), in the percentage of respondents who reported that they had checked the food hygiene rating of a business in the last 12 months compared to all other waves (41%-44%)
• When asked what the lowest hygiene rating usually considered acceptable when buying food, the most common rating selected, amongst those who had heard of the FHRS, was 4 in Wave 11 (52%). This had notably increased from 39% in Wave 2

Preparing food safely at home

• Across all waves, almost 8 in 10 respondents reported that they always cook food until steaming hot and cooked all the way through, with 76% reporting this in Wave 11
• Around 9 in 10 respondents, across all waves (92% in Wave 11), reported that they would never eat chicken or turkey when it is pink or has pink juices
• Across all waves, around 8 in 10 respondents reported that they would reheat food only once, with 83% reporting this in Wave 11

Food allergies, intolerances and other hypersensitivities

Of those with a food hypersensitivity (23% in Wave 11):

• There was a notable increase in the percentage of respondents who had experienced a bad or unpleasant food reaction, increasing from 42% in Wave 3 to 59% in Wave 11. 
• 71% of respondents in Wave 11 reported that they felt comfortable asking staff for more allergy information when eating out, with no notable changes over time. 

Around 8 in 10 respondents, who consider the dietary requirements of themselves or someone else when shopping, across all waves, reported that they were confident (i.e., very confident or fairly confident) that the information provided on food labels allows them to identify foods that will cause a bad or unpleasant physical reaction with 84% reporting this in Wave 11.
 

Food security

• In Wave 11, across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, 79% of respondents were classified as food secure (67% high, 12% marginal) and 21% of respondents were classified as food insecure (10% low, 11% very low)
• In Wave 11, most respondents (92%) reported that they had not used a food bank or other emergency food provider in the last 12 months, with 5% of respondents reporting that they had

Healthy and sustainable diets

Three quarters (75%) of respondents had made at least one change for health reasons in the past 12 months. The most common changes reported by respondents in Wave 11 were: 

• eaten less processed food (49%)
• eaten less sugar or food/drink high in sugar (48%) 
• eaten more fruit and / or vegetables (46%)

Around half of respondents (55%) had made at least one change for sustainability reasons in the past 12 months. The most common changes reported by respondents in Wave 11 were: 

• started to minimise food waste (36%) 
• bought foods with minimal or no packaging (25%) 
• started buying locally produced food or food that is in season (21%)
   

Guidance note on Wave 1-11 trends

As part of the move to an annual survey, the Food and You 2 questionnaire was simplified in Wave 11. Some questions are now asked online only and no longer appear in the postal questionnaire. To ensure valid comparisons over time, trend tables for these questions are now produced using an online only base.

As a result:

• some earlier waves have been excluded from the time series to maximise comparability
• some figures may differ slightly from those published previously, as trends data for some questions are now based on an online only base rather than a combined online and postal sample. Any differences are typically small (around 1–2 percentage points)

Affected tables can be identified in the data tables by:

• a change to the trend weight (e.g. moving to Weight A), and
• updated base descriptions explaining the population included
   

Technical report 

PDF

View Food and You 2 Technical Report as PDF(Open in a new window) (379.58 KB)

EXCEL

View Food and You 2 Wave 11: Technical tables as Excel(Open in a new window) (97.2 KB)

PDF

View Food and You 2: Wave 11 Questionnaire Specification as PDF(Open in a new window) (686.73 KB)

These documents are not fully accessible, should you require an alternative format please get in touch with fsa.communications@food.gov.uk.

Data tables

The data tables for the Wave 11 report are available in our data catalogue