Views on the horsemeat scandal

February 15, 2013, 11:27 AM GMT+0

Over half of people are not confident they know what is in their meat, but most say it has not made them change their shopping habits

A majority (53%) of Brits say that following the horsemeat scandal they are not confident they know what is in the food they eat, while 43% say they are confident and 3% are unsure.

Meanwhile, a plurality (43%) of the public say the recent news that horsemeat has been found in some processed meat products has not made them less confident in British meat, but 38% say they trust British meat less, 14% trust it more and 6% aren’t sure.

Ready meals

Following the recent news that some Findus readymade beef lasagne is comprised of 60% to 100% horsemeat, more than a third (34%) of people say they are less likely to feed themselves and their family ready meals.

However, 18% say it makes no difference and they will continue to eat and/or give their family read meals, while 43% say it makes no difference because they never ate nor gave their families ready meals in the first place.

Paying more for guaranteed meat

Despite the revelations about horsemeat, a plurality (44%) of Brits still say they would not be willing to pay any more for meat that comes from a guaranteed source, while a third (33%) say they would be willing to pay more, 17% are undecided and 6% say they never buy meat.

Changing shopping habits

A strong majority (81%) of people in the UK say the horsemeat scandal has not made them change their shopping habits, compared to 19% who say it has.

Of those who have changed their shopping habits, 58% say they have stopped buying processed meat products altogether, while a third (33%) say they have stopped buying cheap or value range meat products, and instead are only buying expensive processed meat.

Meanwhile, 12% say they have changed which supermarket they shop at, 12% say they have changed the brand of processed meat they buy, and 12% have changed their shopping habits in some other way.

Trust in supermarkets

People are divided on whether supermarkets affected by the horsemeat scandal have been open and honest with customers, with 47% who say they have been honest, and 43% who believe they have not.

Placing blame

Nearly half (49%) of people in Britain believe the meat processing companies are to blame for the horsemeat scandal, while 20% say it is food manufacturing companies who are to blame, 10% blame supermarkets, 8% blame the Food Standards Agency (FSA), 3% say the government is to blame, 9% aren’t sure and 1% say none of these is to blame for the horsemeat scandal.

See the results of the Sky News poll conducted 12th-13th February

See the results of the Sky News poll conducted 13th-14th February

See the results of the Sun poll conducted 13th-14th February