Lack of Trust in British Food Industry

Two fifths are undecided, and only 42% believe the food industry is able to effectively react to food scares (such as BSE and horsemeat) while just 23% of the nation agree that the different elements of the supply chain work effectively together.

The statistics suggest that more consumers will now turn to products with a focus on provenance, as 37% of consumers disagree that supermarkets are aware of where their ingredients originate from.

Alex Beckett, senior food analyst at Mintel, said, “That food should not be harmful should be one of the most basic of consumer expectations, yet only half of adults feel the UK food industry provides food that is safe to eat, signalling a widespread breakdown of trust in the agri-food chain, and suggesting the need for more active communications and great transparency towards consumers.

“The fact that just 36% of consumers believe manufacturers know where their ingredients originate highlights just how long and convoluted modern food supply chains can be. The food industry looks set to face much work to regain consumer trust.”

The top five factors which would encourage consumer trust in food are: British ingredients (48%), manufacturing details on food labelling (47%), animal welfare certificates (45%), product origin on the pack (43%) and no artificial ingredients (43%).