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Food and You 2: 2020-2023 trends report

F&Y2 trends: Chapter 1: Food you can trust

This chapter provides an overview of respondents’ awareness of and trust in the FSA, as well as their confidence in food safety and the accuracy of information provided on food labels between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023).

Diweddarwyd ddiwethaf: 7 December 2023
Gweld yr holl ddiweddariadau
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Diweddarwyd ddiwethaf: 7 December 2023
Gweld yr holl ddiweddariadau
Gweld as PDF

Introduction

The FSA’s overarching mission is ‘food you can trust’. The FSA’s vision is a food system in which:

  • food is safe
  • food is what it says it is
  • food is healthier and more sustainable

This chapter provides an overview of respondents’ awareness of and trust in the FSA, as well as their confidence in food safety and the accuracy of information provided on food labels between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023).

Confidence in food safety and authenticity

Figure 1. Confidence that food is safe and information on food labels is accurate.

A line graph to show consumers confidence that food is safe and information on food labels is accurate between Wave 1 to Wave 6 of the survey.
Confident that food is safe to eat Not confident that food is safe to eat Confident that information on food labels is accurate Not confident that information on food labels is accurate
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20 92 4 86 9
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 93 3 89 8
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 90 6 83 11
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 92 4 86 10
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22 91 5 86 9
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 93 4 87 9

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Delwedd .csv

 Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

There were no notable differences in confidence in food safety and authenticity between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023). Across all waves, around 9 in 10 respondents reported that they were confident (i.e., very confident or fairly confident) that the food they buy is safe to eat and over 8 in 10 respondents reported that they were confident that the information on food labels is accurate (Figure 1) (footnote 1). 

Confidence in the food supply chain

Figure 2. Confidence in the food supply chain.

A line graph to show consumers confidence in the food supply chain between Wave 1 and Wave 6.
Confident in the food supply chain
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20 78
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 77
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 73
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 76
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22 74
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 76

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Delwedd .csv

Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

There were no notable differences in confidence in the food supply chain between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023). 

Across all waves, about three quarters of respondents reported that they were confident (i.e., were very confident or fairly confident) in the food supply chain (Figure 2) (footnote 2). 

Figure 3. Confidence that food outlets ensure food is safe to eat.

A line graph showing consumers confidence that food outlets ensure food is safe to eat between Wave 1 and Wave 6
Farmers Slaughterhouses and dairies Food manufacturers Shops and supermarkets Restaurants Takeaways Food delivery services
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20 90 80 82 86 75 51 39
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 88 78 83 87 84 70 52
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 87 77 78 83 77 56 41
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 88 77 80 85 82 61 45
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 88 78 82 85 82 62 45

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Delwedd .csv

Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

Respondents were asked to indicate how confident they were that many actors involved in the food supply chain ensure that the food they buy is safe to eat. There were no notable differences in confidence (i.e., very confident or fairly confident) in shops and supermarkets between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023). Whilst confidence in restaurants, takeaways and food delivery services was generally consistent across waves, confidence in these actors peaked in Wave 2 (November 2020 to January 2021)** (Figure 3) (footnote 3).

Figure 4. Confidence that food producers ensure food is safe to eat.

A line graph showing consumers confidence that food producers ensure food is safe to eat between Wave 1 and Wave 6
Farmers Slaughterhouses and dairies Food manufacturers Shops and supermarkets Restaurants Take-aways Food delivery services
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20 90 80 82 86 75 51 39
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 88 78 83 87 84 70 52
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 87 77 78 83 77 56 41
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 88 77 80 85 82 61 45
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 88 78 82 85 82 62 45

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Delwedd .csv

Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

There were no notable differences in confidence in farmers, food manufacturers, and slaughterhouses and dairies between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023). Across all waves, around 9 in 10 respondents reported confidence in farmers and around 8 in 10 respondents reported confidence in food manufactures, and slaughterhouses and dairies (Figure 4).  

Awareness, trust, and confidence in the FSA

Figure 5. Confidence in the Food Standards Agency.

A line graph to show consumers confidence in the Food Standards Agency between Wave 1 and Wave 6.
Can be relied upon to protect the public from food-related risks Is committed to communicating openly with the public about food-related risks Takes appropriate action if a food-related risk is identified
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 84 79 84
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 83 77 80
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 85 80 83
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22 80 76 80
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 82 79 82

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Delwedd .csv

Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

There were no notable differences in confidence in the FSA between Wave 2 (November 2020 to January 2021) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023). Across all waves, around 8 in 10 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); takes appropriate action if a food-related risk is identified, and is committed to communicating openly with the public about food-related risks (Figure 5) (footnote 4). 

Figure 6. Trust in the Food Standards Agency.

A line graph showing the proportion of consumers who trust, distrust or neither trust nor distrust the Food Standards Agency between Wave 1 and Wave 6
Trust Neither trust nor distrust it Distrust
W1: Jul-20 to Oct-20 75 22 1
W2: Nov-20 to Jan-21 78 19 1
W3: Apr-21 to Jun-21 75 22 1
W4: Oct-21 to Jan-22 77 19 2
W5: Apr-22 to Jul-22 75 22 1
W6: Oct-22 to Jan-23 78 19 1

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Delwedd .csv

Food and You 2: Wave 1-6

There were no notable differences in trust in the FSA between Wave 1 (July 2020 to October 2020) and Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023).

Across all waves, around three quarters of respondents who had at least some knowledge of the FSA reported that they trusted (i.e., ‘I trust it a lot’ and ‘I trust it’) the FSA to do its job, that is to make sure food is safe and what it says it is. Across all waves, around 2 in 10 reported that they neither trust nor distrust the FSA to do this (Figure 6) (footnote 5). 

  1. Question: How confident are you that… a) the food you buy is safe to eat. b) the information on food labels is accurate (for example, ingredients, nutritional information, country of origin). Responses: very confident, fairly confident, not very confident, not at all confident, it varies, don’t know. Base= 37943, all online respondents, and those answering the relevant postal questionnaire.

  2. Question: How confident are you in the food supply chain? That is all the processes involved in bringing food to your table. Responses: very confident, fairly confident, not very confident, not at all confident, it varies, don’t know. Base= 37943, all online respondents, and those answering the relevant postal questionnaire.

  3. Question: How confident are you that... A) Farmers, B) Slaughterhouses and dairies, C) Food manufacturers for example, factories, D) Shops and supermarkets, E) Restaurants, F) Takeaways, G) Food delivery services for example, Just Eat, Deliveroo, Uber Eats…in the UK (and Ireland) ensure the food you buy is safe to eat. Responses: very confident, fairly confident, not very confident, not at all confident, it varies, don’t know. Base= 28409, all online respondents, and those answering the relevant postal questionnaire. Please note: there has been minor rewording across the waves. This question was not included in Wave 5.

  4. Question: How confident are you that the Food Standards Agency / the government agency responsible for food safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...a) Can be relied upon to protect the public from food-related risks (such as food poisoning or allergic reactions from food). b) Is committed to communicating openly with the public about food-related risks. c) Takes appropriate action if a food related risk is identified? Responses: very confident, fairly confident, not very confident, not at all confident, don’t know. Base= 30720, all online respondents, and those answering the relevant postal questionnaire. Please note: Respondents with little or no knowledge of the Food Standards Agency were asked about ‘the government agency responsible for food safety’, those with at least some knowledge of the Food Standards Agency were asked about the Food Standards Agency. The data from Wave 1 is not present in the trends due to differences in filtering / question wording.

  5. Question: How much do you trust or distrust the Food Standards Agency to do its job? That is to make sure that food is safe and what it says it is. Responses: I trust it a lot, I trust it, I neither trust nor distrust it, I distrust it, I distrust it a lot, don’t know. Base= 23681, all respondents who know a lot or a little about the Food Standards Agency and what it does.
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