Our Food 2022: An annual review of food standards across the UK
Our Food 2022: Appendix 4 Chapter references and explanatory notes
Chapter references and explanatory notes for the Annual report on Food Standards 2022.
- Allocated posts are professional posts allocated to deliver a local authority’s food hygiene controls service based on available budget.
- 2020 is the most recently published external paper on Trading Standard Officers resource.
- Dairy market outlook, AHDB
- Britain’s broken egg industry shows the price of food inflation, Reuters
- This excludes beans and pulses due to unavailability of data.
- All figures in this paragraph from ONS Consumer trends: chained volume measure, seasonally adjusted
- Respondents were asked: Do you have concerns about any of the following? The amount of sugar in food, food waste, animal welfare, hormones, steroids or antibiotics in food, the amount of salt in food, the amount of fat in food, food poisoning, food hygiene when eating out, food hygiene when ordering takeaways, the use of pesticides, food fraud or crime, the use of additives (for example, preservatives and colouring), food prices, genetically modified (GM) foods, chemical contamination from the environment, food miles, the number of calories in food, food allergen information, cooking safely at home, none of these, don’t know. Respondents could select multiple responses. The percentages indicate the proportion of respondents who selected each option.
- Differences in percentages between Scotland and the rest of the UK may be due to methodological differences in how data are collected.
- Social Grade has six possible classifications (A, B, C1, C2, D and E). Census data uses a combined, four-way classification. C1: Supervisory, clerical, and junior managerial, administrative and professional occupations. DE: Semi-skilled and unskilled manual occupations; unemployed and lowest grade occupations.
- The FSA has been measuring food insecurity since 2016. In 2016 and 2018, food insecurity was measured in Food and You. Since 2020 it has been measured in Food and You 2.
- Because of differences in the way that the data is collected, we cannot make direct comparisons between the official USDA measure as set out in Food and You 2 and the more informal measures of certain food insecurity behaviours tracked monthly.
- Free sugars refers to all added sugars in any form; all sugars naturally present in fruit and vegetable juices, purées and pastes and similar products in which the structure has been broken down; all sugars in drinks (except for dairy-based drinks); and lactose and galactose added as ingredients.
- Respondents were asked: To what extent do these areas concern you about the future of food in the UK over the next 3 years? Cost of healthy food. Response options: Not at all concerned, A bit concerned, Quite concerned, Extremely concerned. Reported percentage for concerned combines ‘Extremely concerned’ and ‘Quite concerned’ responses.
- Respondents were asked: To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? I feel priced out of healthy foods. Response options: Disagree strongly, Disagree slightly, Neither agree nor disagree, Agree slightly, Agree strongly. Reported percentage combines ‘Agree slightly’ and ‘Agree strongly’ responses.
- Respondents were asked: To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? It’s difficult to find fresh food (for example, fruit, vegetables, meat) that fits my budget. Response options: Disagree strongly, Disagree slightly, Neither agree nor disagree, Agree slightly, Agree strongly. Reported percentage combines ‘Agree slightly’ and ‘Agree strongly’ responses.
- Defra Food Statistics Pocketbook - Origins of Food Consumed in the UK 2021
- HM Revenue and Customs - UK trade data
- In Wales, the scheme also covers business-to-business operations such as manufacturers that fall under the remit of local authorities.
- Both the FHRS and FHIS provide information about the standard of food hygiene of establishments based on their most recent inspection. FHRS provides a rating between 0 and 5, with 5 being the highest score, indicating ‘very good’ hygiene standards. FHIS provides a rating of ‘pass’ or ‘improvement required’. For this analysis, we have taken an FHRS rating of 3 or above to indicate satisfactory or better rating for English, Welsh and Northern Irish businesses assessed under the FHRS, and a ‘pass rating’ for Scottish businesses assessed under the FHIS. Given differences between FHIS & FHRS, the data between Scotland and the rest of the UK is not comparable.
- Approved meat establishments handle, prepare or produce products of animal origin for which requirements are laid down in retained EU Regulation (EC) No. 853/2004.
- For an explanation of what the ratings categories mean, visit the FSA business guidance on auditing meat establishments
- This was primarily due to the transition in Scotland, with FSS becoming the competent authority for feed and moving to a new electronic system. Any feed inspection outcomes pre 2021 are taken from local authority information.
- Animal feed establishments are rated as either ‘Poor Compliance’, ‘Varying Compliance’, ‘Satisfactory Compliance’, ‘Broad Compliance or better’ and ‘Minimum of Satisfactory Compliance and a member of a FSA approved assurance scheme’. Any establishment rated above ‘Satisfactory’ is considered to be compliant. More information can be found in the Feed Law Code of Practice.
- Allocated posts are professional posts allocated to deliver a local authority’s food hygiene controls service based on available budget.
- Local authorities calculate the proportion of occupied posts using a variety of methods. These are often estimates of resource, which have not been fully validated by the FSA.
- Avian influenza notifications are recorded as microbiological contamination incidents since FSA coordination is required to ensure meat in the supply chain that becomes restricted after slaughter on confirmation of notifiable disease is traced and withdrawn.