Consumer confidence in food - Wales

16 Nov 2021

The Food Standards Agency has published the findings of its latest consumer survey for Wales, covering topics such as food safety in the home, food shopping, eating out, food security, concerns about food, and trust in the FSA and food supply chain.

Key findings:

Food we can trust

Confidence in food safety and authenticity

• More than 9 in 10 (94%) respondents reported that they were confident that the food they buy is safe to eat.
• Almost 9 in 10 (89%) respondents were confident that the information on food labels is accurate.

Confidence in the food supply chain

• Over three quarters of respondents (79%) reported that they had confidence in the food supply chain.
• Respondents were more likely to report confidence in farmers (92%), shops and supermarkets (89%) than in takeaways (74%), and food delivery services (57%).

Awareness, trust and confidence in the FSA

• Over 9 in 10 respondents (93%) had heard of the FSA.
• Over 8 in 10 (81%) respondents who had at least some knowledge of the FSA reported that they trusted the FSA to make sure food is safe and what it says it is.

Concerns about food

• Respondents were asked to briefly explain what their concerns were about the food they eat. The most common concerns related to food safety and hygiene (18%), and food production methods (18%).
• Respondents were asked to indicate if they had concerns about a number of food-related issues, from a list of given options. The most common concerns related to the amount of sugar in food (58%), food waste (57%) and animal welfare (57%).

Food security

• Food security levels were comparable across Wales, adjusted-England*, and Northern Ireland. Over three quarters of respondents were food secure (i.e. had high or marginal food security) in Wales (82%), adjusted -England (86%) and Northern Ireland (84%). Approximately 1 in 6 respondents were food insecure (i.e. had low or very low food security) in Wales (18%), adjusted-England (14%), and Northern Ireland (16%).

Confidence in allergen labelling

• Most respondents (80%) who go food shopping and take into consideration a person who has a food allergy or intolerance were confident that the information provided on food labelling allows them to identify foods that will cause a bad or unpleasant physical reaction.
• Respondents who bought food loose were more confident in identifying these foods in-store at a supermarket (74%), when buying food from a supermarket online (69%) and when shopping at independent food shops (68%). However, respondents were less confident when buying food from food markets or stalls (54%).

Eating out and takeaways

• Most respondents (92%) reported that they had heard of the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS). Almost two thirds (65%) of respondents reported that they had heard of the FHRS and had at least some knowledge of the FHRS.

Food allergy, intolerance, and other hypersensitivities

• Most respondents (86%) reported that they did not have a food hypersensitivity. Fewer than 1 in 10 (9%) respondents reported that they had a food intolerance, 3% had a food allergy, 1% had coeliac disease and 1% had multiple food hypersensitivities.

* Some country level comparisons made between Wales, Northern Ireland and ‘adjusted -England’. The ‘adjusted-England’ weight was calculated to permit comparisons to be made between England (excluding London) and Wales after controlling for differences in age, gender, ethnic group, household size, and urban-rural mix.

For more information see the full reports.