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Published by: Mintel International Group Ltd.
Published: Aug. 1, 2002 - 94 Pages
Table of Contents
Introduction and Abbreviations
Definition
Figure 1: Categories of food safety concerns
Definitions
Abbreviations
Executive Summary
Background to food safety
Trends in food poisoning
Food safety and the food chain
Government and European initiatives
Food industry initiatives
Impact of food safety scares on selected markets
Advertising and promotion
The consumer
Pesticides top the list of food safety issues
The future
Background to Food Safety Issues
Overview of food safety scares
Figure 2: Chronicle of selected major food safety scares in the UK, 1997-2002
Foot-and-Mouth - concerns about pyres and vaccination
Figure 3: Consumer concern about foot-and-mouth disease, by region, March 2001
Figure 4: Attitudes towards meat consumption in light of the foot-and-mouth outbreak, by all respondents and by those concerned about foot-and-mouth disease, March 2001
Theoretical risk of BSE in sheep
Other prominent safety scares
Trends in reported cases of food poisoning
Figure 5: Trends in food poisoning in England and Wales, annual notifications, 1991-2001
Figure 6: Trends in selected causes of food poisoning in England and Wales, annual notifications, 1991-2001
Figure 7: Index of trends in salmonella infections versus deaths from salmonella, 1991-2001
Figure 8: Deaths from salmonella and listeriosis, 1991-2000
Food safety and the food chain
Food production methods
Processing
Distribution and retail
Shopping habits
Food preparation
Taking Responsibility: Food Industry and Government Initiatives
Surveillance
Industry measures
The kitchen and food preparation within the home
BBQing
Increase in eating out
Policing the Food Chain
Impact of Food Safety Scares on Selected Markets
Figure 9: Retail volume sales of beef, poultry and eggs, 1992-2002
Eggs
Beef
Poultry
Organic foods
Figure 10: UK retail sales of organic food and non-alcoholic drink, 1996-2001
Figure 11: UK retail sales of organic food and non-alcoholic drink compared to the total UK food and non-alcoholic drink market, 1996-2001
Figure 12: UK retail sales of organic baby food, 1996-2001
Figure 13: Retail sales of organic red meat and poultry, 1996-2001
Figure 14: Retail sales of organic eggs, 1999-2001
Advertising and Promotion
British Farm Standard - The Red Tractor Logo
FSA National Hygiene Campaign
National Food Safety Week
The Consumer
Figure 15: Agreement and disagreement with various statements regarding food safety, 2000 and 2001
Figure 16: Agreement and disagreement with statement regarding food additives, 1998, 2000 and 2002
Figure 17: Attitudes towards food and safety, May 2002
Figure 18: Attitudes towards food and safety, March 1997 and May 2002
Figure 19: Consumers' most commonly held attitudes towards food safety issues, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 20: Other prominently held consumer attitudes towards food safety issues, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 21: Further consumer attitudes towards food safety, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 22: Attitudes towards cooking guidelines and paying more for organic foods, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 23: Trends in food safety issues of consumer concern, March 1997, August 1998 and May 2002
Figure 24: food safety issues of concern to consumers, May 2002
Figure 25: Food safety issues of concern to consumers, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 26: Consumer concern over food poisoning, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 27: Consumer concern about E numbers/additives and food tampering, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
Figure 28: Attitudes towards food safety issues, by selected food safety issues of consumer concern, May 2002
Figure 29: Further attitudes towards food and safety issues, by selected food safety issues of consumer concern, May 2002
Figure 30: Correlation between food safety issues and red meat consumption, 2002
Consumer typologies
Figure 31: Characteristics of food safety consumer typologies, May 2002
Figure 32: Food safety consumer typologies, by demographic sub-group, May 2002
The Future
Further opportunity to regain consumer confidence
No room for complacency
Food poisoning rates still need to be tackled
Responsibility at each step of the food chain
Future challenges for the FSA
But the FSA is not alone
Maintaining confidence
Forecast
Growth expected in the absence of major food scares
Figure 33: Forecast of selected associated markets, 2002-06
New initiatives proving beneficial
Transparency will reassure consumers
Organic foods will benefit from lingering uncertainty
Factors incorporated
Appendix: Research methodology
Index of reports
AbstractMintel last reviewed the impact of UK food safety on selected food markets within the Market Intelligence series in August 1997. The intervening period has seen no let up in the number and diversity of food scares, including a dramatic media storm during 1999 over the potential health effects and environmental impact of GM foods.
However, with the FSA up and running since April 2000, there is a new approach of openness and transparency to the communication of food safety issues. While there have been no major food scares or media storms since the FSA was set up, the FSA has nevertheless had to deal with a range of food safety issues including salmonella in some prepacked salads, an illegal antibiotic found in Chinese honey, concerns over the extent of campylobacter contamination of chickens, high levels of aflatoxin B1 (a cancer-causing toxin) found in some peanut butters, and the presence of Bisphenol A in various canned products. The FSA has also had to deal with the theoretical possibility that BSE may be present in sheep, and the recent discovery of acrylamide, a potential carcinogen, in a range of fried and baked foods.
The nature of food and the demands of the food supply are such that food safety issues and food scares will always occur. How they are handled and communicated undoubtedly influences consumer confidence levels, which ultimately determine the impact on food markets. Consumer research commissioned by Mintel for this report shows that approximately a third of respondents remain concerned about the key food safety issues of pesticides, GM foods, food poisoning, and BSE/CJD, though this is lower than that registered in Mintel's previous research (1997 and 1998). However, more consumers are concerned about the safety of food in general than in 1997. Interestingly, over this time period there has been dramatic growth in the organic food market, albeit from a small base, which has been fuelled by the debates about GM foods, food production methods and food safety.
The incidence of food poisoning has risen over the past decade, although more recent trends show that reported cases have been stable for the past three years. While cases of VTEC (E. coli) and campylobacter have been rising, cases of salmonella, clostridium perfringens and listeriosis have fallen. In the case of salmonella, this reflects the impact of vaccination of hens against salmonella under the Red Lion code of practice for egg production, demonstrating that new initiatives can make a big impact.
This report examines these issues in more detail and assesses their impact on relevant food markets. Consumer research, exclusively commissioned from BMRB by Mintel, highlights consumer attitudes towards food safety and the impact of the spate of food safety scares on consumer concerns about specific food safety issues.
This report examines the hypothesis that: "Previous food scares, particularly BSE and the storm over GM foods, have generated significant consumer concerns about the safety of food. While evidence suggests a positive impact of the Food Standards Agency, there nevertheless remains a high level of concern about the general safety of food. Since consumer opinion is fuelled by media coverage, a further major food scare could re-ignite consumer fears in the future."
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