Consumers mindful of best before dates

Related tags Food Food safety

A high level of concern about best before dates in the latest survey from the Food Standards Agency could indicate that politicians’ talk on food issues influences those that remain top of mind for UK consumers.

The FSA survey questioned 2,081 consumers across the UK from September 2 to September 6, the latest of its quarterly surveys tracking public attitudes toward food safety and the agency’s role.

As for unprompted responses – that is, concerns that were mentioned before respondents had seen a list of potential areas for concern – food poisoning was cited by 15 per cent, while ten per cent mentioned best before dates on food products, and an equal proportion mentioned restaurant hygiene.

The issue of best before dates had made headlines just two weeks before the survey was carried out, following comments from environment minister Hilary Benn, who encouraged people to ignore best before dates and judge for themselves if food is still good to eat in order to prevent waste. His comments were made in conjunction with the publication of a number of reports urging a radical rethink of UK food production in order to secure sustainable food supplies at reasonable prices.

Food prices and sugar content

The survey also showed that UK consumers are significantly more worried about food prices and the sugar content of foods than they were three months ago.

Total consumer concern about food safety remained constant this quarter, at 64 per cent, and levels of concern about the majority of food issues were also comparable to previous surveys. When presented with a list of food safety issues, food poisoning and food hygiene when eating out were respondents’ top fears, at 46 and 44 per cent, followed by worries about the amount of fat and salt in foods, at 42 and 41 per cent respectively.

But the proportion of respondents who are worried about the sugar content of their food has risen significantly, to hit 40 per cent, up from 36 per cent three months ago. Food prices represented the greatest increase in consumer concern, however, up from 33 per cent at the time of the previous survey to 38 per cent.