Of the thousand people surveyed:

• 78% said they didn’t trust manufacturers to always tell the truth about how food was produced
  
• 70% say they now always check food labels before buying - the main areas for concern being calorie/fat/sugar levels (55.2%), artificial additives (48.2%), and to make sure all ingredients are real (18.4%)
  
• Half the population have now made a conscious decision to cut artificial ingredients from their diets
  
• Two thirds are happy to pay extra for food made from real ingredients, showing a real reversal from the price-focused shopper of old
  
• 20% of British households buy food at Farmers’ Markets (this figure has doubled since the 1980’s)
  
• People in their forties and fifties are 75% more likely to shop at Farmers Markets than people in their twenties

Jimmy Doherty, star of hit BBC show Jimmy’s Farm comments “It’s becoming clear that the British public has had enough and are not prepared to take their food at face value anymore. Clear labelling and honest communications are vital if food manufactures want to rebuild this trust. Producing high quality food, with a traceable, transparent chain is my passion and it’s great to see shoppers supporting companies who take quality ingredients seriously.”

The news that almost 80% of people don’t believe manufacturers are always honest about their food is shocking, but it may indicate why Kettle® Chips are still the UK’s favourite hand cooked chips. Since the company started in the UK in 1988, it has only ever used 100% natural ingredients in all of their products.

Kettle Survey Key Statistics

• Forty two percent of household shoppers check where food has come from before they buy.
  
• Almost a quarter of households shop organically (only 3 percent say this was something they did in the 1980s).
  
• Twenty percent of British households buy food at Farmers Markets (only half of that number did in the 1980s)
  
• Around four out of five people say they sometimes feel food manufacturers aren’t entirely honest about how food is produced.
  
• Seventy two percent want to know if there are any additives or preservatives in their food.
  
• Almost two thirds are willing to pay a bit more for food that is made from real ingredients.
  
• Almost half of people have made a conscious decision to try to cut out anything artificial from their diet.
  
• Less than three out of ten people believe that if you want healthier food, you tend to have to compromise on taste.
  
• Seven out of ten people check the label on food products before buying. People check for a variety of things, including artificial additives (48.2%), calorie/fat/sugar content (55.2%), and to make sure ingredients are real (18.4%).
  
• Not surprisingly, women are more likely to check labels for fat, sugar and calorie content, but the gap isn’t as big as you might think – 45.2% of men will check for these, compared to 60.2% of women.
  
• People in their forties and fifties are 75% more likely to shop at a Farmer’s Market than people in their twenties and thirties.
  
• When asked to guess how many different types of potato are in the world, guesses ranged from one to one thousand. The average guess was 16 (there are over 4,000).

For more information visit www.kettlefoods.co.uk