Just over one year from its launch, Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has published its first Food in Scotland Consumer Tracking Survey, lifting the lid on the nation’s views and habits on food safety and hygiene, food authenticity and healthy eating.
This survey, conducted eight months after FSS was created, shows that of most concern to people in Scotland is making sure they and their families eat a healthy, balanced diet (31 per cent), closely followed by concerns over becoming ill through eating unsafe food (30 per cent).
With these issues on the nation’s agenda though, only 37 per cent of people surveyed know what Campylobacter is – the bacteria which causes the biggest number of food poisoning cases in Scotland each year. Campylobacter poisoning is strongly linked to eating chicken which hasn’t been prepared or cooked properly, and there are significant spikes during the summer months, when more people are buying and barbecuing chicken pieces, such as drumsticks and thighs.
A high proportion of Scots recognised that Scotland has a problem in relation to diet, with half (50 per cent) concerned about people having an unhealthy diet, and 74 per cent agreeing that ‘there are too many people who eat unhealthily in Scotland’.
However, there is a disconnect between this and the Scottish public’s view of their own diets, with over half (53 per cent) believing the food and drink their family normally consume is healthy. The links between diet and health are also familiar to most, with 85 per cent agreeing that they ‘know that an unhealthy diet can cause lots of health problems, like cancer and heart disease’.
Just over half of the participants (51 per cent) ‘know they need to do something to eat more healthily’, and likewise, a significant proportion (41 per cent) agree they ‘know they eat too many ‘treats’ like cakes, biscuits, chocolates or sweets every day’.
These results support the FSS boards recommendation to Scottish Ministers in January, to consider a range of proposals from a sugar tax to portion size reduction, and tougher targets for reformulation of food and drink to tackle head on the growing obesity crisis in Scotland. It is projected that if it continues to rise it is expected that 40 per cent of the Scottish population will be obese 15 years from now.
Geoff Ogle, FSS Chief Executive, said, ‘This survey has provided us with a wealth of information that will help us plan and support and protect consumers. It also demonstrates how far we have come in year one, as FSS achieved a high level of trust, with 70 per cent of those aware of FSS trusting the organisation to do its job.
‘It is encouraging to know that people in Scotland realise something needs to change to improve the Scottish diet, with the links between health and having a healthy diet well established.
‘This survey highlights for us those areas where FSS can provide consistent, robust advice and help consumers make change in terms of their food choices, but we recognise that change cannot come from individuals alone. Industry, government and others also have a part to play.’
The survey will be conducted biannually among a representative sample of the Scottish population.