Shoppers in the UK want to buy more British food but even slight price rises will see them choose cheaper imported produce instead, a new report from AHDB suggests.
The organisation’s latest Consumer Focus report 'Buying British' suggests that a price hike of just ten per cent could see 30 per cent of shoppers opting for cheaper foreign alternatives.
“Price is a key purchase consideration and so remaining competitive will be crucial for home producers and growers,” the report advised. “If prices rise too much, consumers will simply look for cheaper alternatives from abroad.”
Despite some people's expectations, the findings do not suggest a wave of patriotism has helped boost sales of British food since the referendum and the report warns that relying on the British brand alone will not be enough to drive sales.
Encouragingly for the British food industry, an IGD survey cited in the report revealed that 68 per cent of UK shoppers think supermarkets should focus more on selling food produced by British farmers. However 72 per cent said they would buy more British food if it was better value for money.
The extent to which British provenance is a driver to purchase varies according to a shopper’s age, with over 70 per cent of over-65s saying they try to buy British food whenever they can, according to a Mintel survey.
Somewhat paradoxically, this older age group is also most concerned about price rises – 74 per cent of consumers over 55 said increasing food prices were their biggest concern when it came to their financial circumstances.
This suggests that older soncumers support for buying British does not come at any price.
Younger consumers, meanwhile, are less likely to be driven by the British brand, with health, convenience and saving time all emerging as important considerations.
IGD research on post-milennials (aged 18-25) showed that these consumers were more likely to equate attributes such as health as better quality. The report therefore advided British producers to consider educating these consumers “about the most relevant quality cues that apply to your products”.
With real incomes only recently returning to growth, the report’s author Sukhvinder Gill expects the focus on price to intensify in future.
“The UK shopper is price conscious and increasingly so, given the current economic climate is putting pressure on household budgets,” he wrote. “This means that maintaining price competitiveness will be key for the UK agricultural sector.”
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