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Most consumers do not realise the complexity of the food supply chain but do want to know more about where their food comes from, Queen’s University Belfast PhD student Stephanie Brooks said at an event in Belfast on Thursday evening.
Brooks is currently carrying out research work on the beef supply chain in NI and has found that most consumers were shocked at the complexity of food production.
“There is a whole network of processes such as imports, exports and byproduct processes on the way from the primary producer to the consumer,” she said at the event organised by final year agricultural technology students at Queen’s.
In a survey of consumers, Brooks said that traceability, country of origin and farm quality assurance labelling were listed as important by respondents.
She said that this backed up previous research which showed that consumers are placing more value on labelling, country of origin, ethical and environmental factors. “It is clear that consumers want to know where their food comes from and feel close to production,” she said.
Confusion
She pointed out that although important for many consumers, terminology on food packets can be confusing for some shoppers.
And although her research did show that consumers want to know more about food production and some labelling is a legal requirement anyway, certain consumers can be put off by supply chain information.
“I threw meat I bought away because it made me feel sick when I read that the animal was slaughtered in the UK,” one respondent said in the survey.
Quality
Brooks’ research also showed that consumers feel that paying more for a product makes them think that it is better quality, particularly with brands and across different retailers.
Her research also involved asking producers what they thought consumers knew about the beef supply chain. The general response was that most farmers believed that shoppers had little understanding of food production and did not put a high value on food.
Further reports from the agricultural technology symposium at Queen’s entitled “Bridging the gap between producers and consumers” will feature in next week’s edition of the Irish Farmers Journal and on www.farmersjournal.ie.
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