THE UK BY NUMBERS


FOOD AND DIET THE UK BY NUMBERS


We present an at-a-glance overview of the key issues in Britain today. In this issue our focus is on food production and consumption. All statistics are from the DEFRA Food Statistics Pocketbook 2014 unless otherwise stated


Dietary health


The eatwell plate highlights the different types of food that make up our diet, and shows the proportions we should eat them in to have a well balanced and healthy diet. Source: NHS/Department of Health


Plenty of fruit and vegetables 33%


Plenty of bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods - wholegrain when possible 32%


Some meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein 12%


Some milk and dairy foods 15%


Small amount of foods and drinks high in fat and/or sugar 8%


“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” Hippocrates


10% 18% 53%


Plenty of ‘fruit and vegetables’ Some ‘meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein' Just a small amount of ‘foods and drinks high in fat and/or sugar’


The lowest 10% of households by income purchase the least fruit and vegetables at an average of 2.9 portions per person per day (2012)


Food prices have risen 18% in real terms since 2007 taking us back to the late nineties in terms of cost of food relative to other goods


In 2012, 24 countries together accounted for 90% of UK food supply. Just over half of this (53%) was supplied from within the UK


The food sector in GB employed 3.1 million people in Q1 2014 (3.6 million if agriculture and fishing are included along with self-employed farmers), a 2.3% increase on Q1 2013. It covered 11% of GB employment in Q1 2014 (13% if agriculture and fishing are included along with self-employed farmers). Non-residential catering is the largest food sector accounting for 45% of the total (excluding agriculture). Employment in this sector increased 6.1% on Q1 2013 (82,000 employees)


Source: Labour Market Statistics (ONS) and June Survey (Defra) Consumer choice


Some ‘milk and dairy foods' Plenty of ‘bread, rice, potatoes, pasta and other starchy foods'. Choose wholegrain varieties when you can


Factors influencing consumer product choice


Quality or performance Promotions Price


Ethical or eco-friendly Ease of using Brand Familiar Use by date Healthy option Taste or smell


0 50 100


Price is increasingly important in driving product choice, with 41% of shoppers naming it as the most important factor and 88% listing it within their top five influences. Quality was rated as the highest influence by 16% of respondents, followed by taste or smell (12%) and healthy (9%). Promotions are highly influential with 65% listing it in the top 5 factors.


“Part of the secret of a success in life is to eat what you like and let


the food fight it out inside” Mark Twain


Rated within top 5 Rated within top 2 Most important


150 200


20 SOCIETY NOW AUTUMN 2014


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