About the research
Food and You 2 is an official statistics survey commissioned by the Food Standards Agency (FSA). The push-to-web survey uses stratified random sampling to recruit adults (aged 16 or over) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The nationally representative survey measures people’s self-reported knowledge, attitudes and behaviour relating to food safety and other food-related behaviours. The survey includes a wide range of topics including food safety in the home, food insecurity, eating out and takeaways, food hypersensitivities, healthy eating, and a variety of emerging issues from willingness to eat lab-grown meat, awareness of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to use of cannabidiol (CBD) products.
Fieldwork for Food and You 2: Wave 1 launched in July 2020 and fieldwork has been conducted twice a year since. Food and You 2: Wave 8 is our most recent report, which was conducted in partnership with Food Standards Scotland, recruiting adults from Scotland in addition to those in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Food and You 2 is a modular survey with topics varying between waves, some questions are asked in every (bi-annual) wave of the survey, whereas others are asked less frequently.
Key messages
- The FSA’s fundamental mission is food you can trust. This means a food system in which food is safe, food is what it says it is and food is healthier and more sustainable. Food and You 2 measures self-reported attitudes, knowledge and behaviour related to food safety and other food-related topics amongst consumers living in England, Wales and Northern Ireland in areas that are of interest to the FSA (e.g. food safety, food hypersensitivities, food insecurity). Food and You 2 enables the FSA to monitor changes in consumers’ attitudes, knowledge and behaviours over time, supporting the FSA in identifying emerging trends and issues for consumers. For example, the percentage of respondents classified as food insecure increased from 15% in Wave 3 (April 2021 to June 2021) to 25% in Wave 6 (October 2022 to January 2023) and has remained relatively stable since.
- Food and You 2 provides high quality data on a range of novel topics. For example, Food and You 2: Wave 8 provided the first official statistic of the prevalence of freeganism, finding that 5% of respondents had started getting food from the waste area or bins of a supermarket or shop in the previous 12 months. We observe that this practice was more common in some groups such as households with children under 6 years old (9%), those who were long-term unemployed or never worked (10%) and full-time students (12%). In addition, Food and You 2: Wave 6 provided the first official statistic on the emergence of social supermarkets (i.e., a shop which sells discounted products to those on a low income), indicating that 4% of respondents reported that they had used a social supermarket in the previous 12 months.
- Our latest data, Food and You 2: Wave 8 explored experiences of those with food hypersensitivities (i.e., allergy, intolerance, coeliac or other physical reaction after consuming certain foods). Findings demonstrate that 58% of those with hypersensitivities reported that they had experienced a reaction in the previous 12 months. The most common self-reported causes of reactions were food made to order from a restaurant or café (19%), food ordered directly from a takeaway shop or restaurant (19%), food prepared/cooked by the respondent at home (17%) and pre-packaged food bought in a shop or café (15%).
The challenge
The FSA was established in 2000 following several high-profile outbreaks of foodborne illness. The FSA’s works to safeguard public health and protect the interests of consumers in relation to food in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The FSA work closely with the UK Government and the governments in Wales and Northern Ireland, but acts independently and transparently, led by science and evidence. The FSA’s fundamental mission is food you can trust; this means a food system in which food is safe, food is what I says it is and food is healthier and more sustainable.
Food and You 2 enables to FSA to monitor progress towards its strategic outcomes that food is safe, food is what it says it is, and food is healthier and more sustainable. The survey provides methodologically robust and representative evidence to identify where further FSA action or research is required. Specifically, to inform FSA communication campaigns, evidence-based policy decision-making, risk and impact assessments, and inform future research within the FSA. The data is also used outside the FSA by other Government departments (e.g., Defra), academics and third sector organisations. Food and You 2 supports and promotes the FSA’s wider role as an evidence generator through building a robust evidence base around consumer knowledge, attitudes and behaviours related to food. This contributes to the FSA’s corporate objective of ‘building and enhancing our science, evidence and surveillance capability’.
The approach
Introduction
Food and You 2 is a self-report survey which is conducted with adults (aged 16 years or over) living in private households in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Food and You 2: Wave 8 is our most recent report, also recruited adults living in Scotland.
The fieldwork for Food and You 2: Wave 1 was launched in July 2020 using push-to-web. Food and You 2 replaced the Food and You survey (2010-2018), which was conducted biannually using face-to-face data collection. The transition from a face-to-face method to the more cost-effective push to web method provided numerous benefits, including an increase in the sample size and frequency of the survey, more efficient data collection and timely reporting of the findings. Despite the numerous advantages of the new methodology, the change in methodology means that the findings of Food and You and Food and You 2 are not directly comparable. However, this was a necessary trade-off given the declining response rates of face-to-face surveys and need to modernise the survey.
Design
Food and You 2 is a modular survey, with modules being included biannually (6 monthly), annually (12 monthly), biennially (24 monthly), or on an ad hoc basis. A summary table of module frequency and the latest data for each module can be found on the Food and You 2 homepage.
Summary of Food and You 2 modules and fieldwork frequency
| Module | Frequency |
| About you and your household | 6 months |
| Food you can trust | |
| Food concerns | |
| Food security | |
| Food shopping | 12 months |
| Eating out and the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme (FHRS) | |
| Eating at home (core) | |
| Eating at home (deep dive) | 24 months |
| Healthy eating (Northern Ireland only) | |
| Emerging issues (deep dive) | |
| Food hypersensitivities (deep dive) | Ad-hoc |
Each wave of the survey consists of an online version of the survey and two hard copy versions of the survey. Due to the length and complexity of the online survey it is not possible to include all questions in a single hard-copy version, consequently, the two versions which divide the content of the online survey are used.
Sampling and recruitment
Food and You 2 uses random stratified sampling to select addresses from the Royal Mail’s Postcode Address File (PAF), a database of UK addresses. The sample is stratified by region in England (with Wales and Northern Ireland being treated as regions), by local authority (District in Northern Ireland), and area of deprivation score (England – Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD); Wales – Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation (WIMD); Northern Ireland – Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NIMDM) and in Scotland the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD)). The size of the sample drawn from the PAF provides an estimated minimum sample of 1,000 household responses in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland (when included in fieldwork) and 2,000 in England.
Food and You 2 uses push-to-web, a quantitative data collection method in which people are sent a letter via post inviting them to take part in an online survey. Potential respondents who do not complete the survey online are sent a hard copy of the questionnaire. Providing a hard copy of the survey this enables respondents with low digital literacy or limited access to the internet to take part in the survey, helping to make the survey more representative. The survey is available in English and Welsh for respondents based in Wales.
Summary of mailing approach:
- Mailing 1: Initial invitation letter inviting up to two adults (aged 16 years+) per household to complete the survey online
- Mailing 2: Reminder letter – issued around 2 weeks after the initial invitation.
- Mailing 3: Second reminder – includes hard copy/copies of the questionnaire
- Mailing 4: Final reminder letter
Mailings 2, 3 and 4 are only sent if the survey has not been completed since the previous mailing. Respondents receive a £10 voucher for completing the survey.
Weighting
Weighting is applied to the data to make the survey estimates more representative of the population by reducing the impact of unequal selection probabilities and demographic discrepancies between those who completed the survey and the ONS country population totals (see the Food and You 2: Technical Report for further details on weighting).
Benefits of depositing Food and You 2 data with UK Data Service
The UK Data Service is a fantastic resource which allows the Food and You 2 team to ensure the long-term preservation and safe storage of our data, raises the profile of Food and You 2, and enables the data to be more discoverable and citable. The UK Data Service team provided support and guidance of best practices for data preparation and sharing standards when we initially offered the Food and You 2 dataset and have provided ongoing advice and support. As the Service team maintains control and administration of the dataset and handles queries from external users, the vast majority of tasks are dealt with on our behalf, meaning that the data can be shared with external users without any additional workload. As data are assigned a DOI we are able to track who and how Food and You 2 data are being used.
Research findings
Key Findings – Food and You 2: Wave 8
Concerns about food
- 79% of respondents had no concerns about the food they eat, and 21% of respondents reported that they had a concern.
- Respondents were asked to indicate if they had concerns about several food-related issues, from a list of options. The most common concern was food prices (69%). Other common concerns were the quality of food (65%), food waste (63%) and the amount of sugar in food (58%) (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Around 7 in 10 respondents are concerned about food prices.
Source: Food and You 2: Wave 8, Food Standards Agency
Food security
- Across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, 76% of respondents were classified as food secure (60% high, 16% marginal) and 24% of respondents were classified as food insecure (11% low, 13% very low)
- Food security varied by age group with older adults being more likely to report that they were food secure and less likely to report that they were food insecure than younger adults. For example, 40% of respondents aged 16-24 years were food insecure (18% low, 22% very low security) compared to 6% of those aged 75 years and over (4% low, 2% very low security), (Figure 2).
- Most respondents (94%) reported that they had not used a food bank or other emergency food provider in the last 12 months, with 4% of respondents reporting that they had.
Figure 2. 4 in 10 16- to 24-year-olds are food insecure.
Source: Food and You 2: Wave 8, Food Standards Agency
Food allergies, intolerances and other hypersensitivities
- 12% of respondents reported that they have a food intolerance, 4% reported having a food allergy, and 1% reported having coeliac disease. Most respondents (77%) reported that they did not have a food hypersensitivity.
- Of those with a food allergy, the most common foods reported as causing a reaction were fruit (26%), other nuts (for example almonds, hazelnuts) (21%), crustaceans (for example, crabs, lobster, prawns, scampi) (15%), peanuts (14%) and molluscs (14%) (Figure 3).
- 58% of respondents who have a food hypersensitivity reported that they had experienced a reaction in the previous 12 months and 37% reported that they had not experienced a reaction.
Figure 3. Fruit is most likely to cause allergic reactions.
Source: Food & You 2: Wave 8, Food Standards Agency
Eating at home
Cleaning
- 70% of respondents reported that they always wash their hands before preparing or cooking food.
- 92% of respondents reported that they always wash their hands immediately after handling raw meat, poultry, or fish.
Chilling
- 60% of respondents reported that their fridge temperature should be between 0-5 degrees Celsius.
- 58% of respondents who have a fridge reported that they monitored the temperature; either manually (46%) or via an internal temperature alarm (12%).
Use-by dates
- 65% of respondents identified the use-by date as the information which shows that food is no longer safe to eat.
- 66% of respondents reported that they always check use-by dates before they cook or prepare food.
Changes to eating habits, meat alternatives and genetic technologies
- The most common changes reported by respondents were that they had eaten less processed food (43%) and started minimising food waste (38%) in the previous 12 months (Figure 4).
- 27% of respondents reported that they currently eat meat alternatives, 22% of respondents reported that they used to eat meat alternatives but no longer do, and 44% of respondents reported that they had never eaten meat alternatives.
Figure 4. Around 4 in 10 respondents had eaten less processed food in the previous 12 months
Source: Food and You 2: Wave 8, Food Standards Agency
The impact
‘The FSA has an important role in protecting public health and Food and You 2 is our main source of robust data on what consumers think and do when it comes to food. Colleagues in risk assessment, policy, strategy, and communications teams regularly use insights from Food and You 2 to inform their decision-making, as well as colleagues from across the wider food policy community.’ Michelle Patel, Deputy Director of Science, Evidence & Research, Food Standards Agency
- Data has been widely used in a range of government publications including DEFRAs UK Food Security Report, Food Security Index 2024, and Food Statistics in your pocket.
- Insights from the survey have led to enhancements in the Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, making it more transparent and accessible to consumers. This includes clearer display requirements for food hygiene ratings in restaurants and takeaways.
- Findings have informed targeted food safety campaigns aimed at reducing foodborne illnesses. For instance, campaigns have been designed to address specific gaps in consumer knowledge about safe food handling practices at home.
- Food and You 2 is regularly featured in the media (e.g., Express) industry related publications (e.g., Food Safety News, Food Manufacture), government and public sector news (e.g., WiredGov).
- The findings have been widely cited in academic literature and has the data recently been used for secondary analysis (e.g., Armstrong, Smith & Garratt, 2024; Garratt & Armstrong, 2024).
“Data and insight from the Food and You 2 reports are incredibly helpful to the FSA Communications team in understanding consumer behaviours and helping us to be strategic in our consumer communications activities. A consumer campaign on food hygiene in the kitchen is being launched by the FSA in Spring 2025, and insights from the next wave of Food and You 2 will help ensure messages are created effectively and targeted to the correct audience in order to encourage behaviour change.” Harriet Dean, Senior Communications Manager, FSA
Impact case study: Northern Ireland
The Food and You 2 provides robust data for Northern Ireland with a sample size over 1000 participants. Below are examples of how the data was used to inform policies within the Dietary Health team:
- Data relating to participants concerns about the food they eat was particularly useful to inform the Making Food Better (MFB) programme as the top two concerns were the amount of salt and sugar in food. The MFB programme supports Northern Ireland food businesses to make the food environment healthier This data was shared with the MFB Steering group.
- The survey provided the most up to date data on food security levels in Northern Ireland since 2018. This research formed part of the consumer engagement of a collaborative project with Safefood and the Northern Ireland Consumer Council, which presented the lived experience of food insecurity in Northern Ireland using data from a report entitled ‘the cost of a healthy food basket in Northern Ireland’.
- The survey also provided information relating to participants eating out habits which is beneficial to inform policy in the Out of Home sector including the Calorie Wise scheme (voluntary calorie labelling scheme for the out of home sector). Due to a current lack of resource, this information hasn’t been utilised. However, this information will be used in Calorie Wise workshops and related training, when applicable. This data will also be used to inform the evidence base for the forthcoming consideration of policy on mandatory calorie labelling in Northern Ireland.
- Reports have been shared and presented to a range of Northern Ireland organisations on the all-island food poverty network. Presentations detailed food security statistics for Northern Ireland, and highlighted behaviours and attitudes of those categorised as food insecure.
Read the research
We produce an Official Statistics Key Findings report for each wave of data collection. In addition, there is a series of secondary analysis reports which provide an overview of key trends or more detailed analyses of policy relevant or country specific data.
Food and You 2 official statistic reports
The Key Findings report, technical report and data for each wave can be found at the following links:
Secondary analysis reports
Food and You 2 trends
Food Hygiene Rating Scheme
Country specific secondary analysis: Northern Ireland and Wales
Published research
Armstrong, B., Smith, R., Garratt, E. (2024). Risk it for a biscuit: Food safety behaviours and food insecurity of older adults. Appetite, Volume 203, 107650.
Garratt, E., Armstrong, B. Food insecurity and food bank use: who is most at risk of severe food insecurity and who uses food banks? Public Health Nutrition. 2024;27(1):e174.
Related links
Follow us on Twitter: @foodgov
Find us on Facebook: facebook.com/FoodStandardsAgency
Research funding and partners
Food and You 2 is funded by the Food Standards Agency (project reference: FS430662). The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Food Standards Scotland (FSS) co-fund relevant waves.