The Food Standards Agency’s (FSA) Food and You 2 survey, conducted between October 2022 and January 2023, revealed that levels of food insecurity reached 25%, an increase from 16% when the first wave of the study was conducted between July and October 2020.
Food security can be defined as ‘having limited or uncertain access to adequate food’. The findings show that 80% of respondents reported that they had made changes to their eating habits for financial reasons in the previous 12 months.
This research also reveals that food prices remain the top food-related concern for people (65%), with food waste (62%), the quality of food (62%), and the amount of food packaging (56%).
Key findings from the survey:
- 25% of respondents were classified as food insecure
- 78% of 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’
- 93% of respondents reported that they were confident that the food they buy is safe to eat
- 76% of respondents reported that they had confidence in the food supply chain
- 64% of respondents reported that they always check use-by dates before they cook or prepare food
Emily Miles, chief executive at the FSA, commented: “The latest data has shown increasing levels of food insecurity and a high level of concern about rising food prices. Consumers are continuing to make changes to their dining and grocery shopping habits in light of these concerns. The experiences that people are reporting to us are concerning and show the increasing struggle many people are facing with the cost of living.
“We will share these latest insights with the Governments we serve in Wales, Northern Ireland and Westminster, so they can use them to inform their policy making. Collecting evidence about people’s experiences of food is part of the FSA’s role to protect public health and consumers’ interests in relation to food.”