Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Ethical food and drink sector forecast to continue to grow
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- Figure 1: UK market size and forecast for food and drink products sold under selected leading ethical labels*, 2010-20
- The consumer
- Free-range goods are purchased by the majority of Brits
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- Figure 2: Awareness of ethical food certifications/logos and terms, March 2015
- Animal welfare most widely seen as an important ethical aspect for food companies
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- Figure 3: Perceived importance of ethical business attributes (any ranking 1-5), March 2015
- 52% would stop buying food from a company acting unethically
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- Figure 4: Attitudes towards ethical food, March 2015
- Half of organic buyers see organic as too expensive to buy regularly
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- Figure 5: Further attitudes towards ethical food, March 2015
- Edible insects garner the highest interest in trial
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- Figure 6: Correspondence map of perceptions of novel food types, March 2015
- Companies, brands and innovation
- Freedom Food rebrands to RSPCA Assured
Issues and Insights
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- Just one in four trust extra paid for fair trade goes to producers
- The facts
- The implications
- Over half of organic buyers agree it’s too expensive to buy regularly
- The facts
- The implications
- 37% think ethical standards are compromised in low-priced food
- The facts
- The implications
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Ethical food and drink sector growth forecast to slow
- Sales of Fairtrade Foundation products register their first decline, organic continues to grow
- Groceries Code Adjudicator launches first investigation
Market Size and Forecast
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- Retailer commitments bode well for the ethical sector
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- Figure 7: UK market size and forecast for food and drink products sold under selected leading ethical labels*, 2010-20
- Figure 8: UK market size and forecast for food and drink products sold under selected leading ethical labels*, 2010-20
- Rising real incomes should benefit some ethical segments
- New ethical niches threaten established ethical schemes
- Several positives for organic
Segment Performance
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- Fairtrade sales register their first decline
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- Figure 9: UK sales of selected ethically certified food and drink products, 2010-14
- Organic continues to grow
- Rainforest Alliance
- Marine Stewardship Council
Market Drivers
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- Wider scope for EU Members to restrict GMO products
- New EU organic regulation proposed for 2017
- Food and drink companies commit to pay the living wage
- Europol warns over counterfeiting of ethically labelled goods
- Growth in real wages should benefit higher-priced sectors
- Large-scale animal rearing units hit regulatory hurdles in the UK
- Groceries Code Adjudicator launches first investigation
- Global players call for RSPO to strengthen standards
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Freedom Food rebrands to RSPCA Assured
- Organic Trade Board launches biggest campaign to date
- Heineken launches campaign to promote sustainable sourcing
- IKEA highlights the lower carbon footprint of its veg balls
- Booths renames own-label milk Fair Milk
Brand Communication and Promotion
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- Fairtrade Foundation brings out the brands for Fairtrade Fortnight 2015
- Organic Trade Board launches biggest campaign to date
- McDonald’s uses ethical sourcing as a marketing cue
- Freedom Food rebrands to RSPCA Assured
- Heineken launches campaign to promote sustainable sourcing
- Sustainable Fish City status awarded to Bournemouth and Poole
Launch Activity and Innovation
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- Figure 10: Share of new UK food and drink product launches bearing selected ethical claims, 2010-15
- Brands take different approaches to use of ‘organic’ on-pack
- Waitrose rebrands Duchy product range
- Fairtrade Foundation endorses Waitrose Foundation
- Booths renames own-label milk Fair Milk
- Asda champions waste reduction with packs of Wonky Veg
- KFC introduces hedgehog-friendly Krushems cups in UK…
- …and adds the Red Tractor logo to its buckets for the first time
- App informs consumers whether brands use ethical palm oil
- IKEA to offer a “wider variety of healthier and more sustainable” food
- Selected restaurants focus on resource sustainability
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The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Free-range goods are purchased by the majority of Brits
- Animal welfare most widely seen as an important ethical aspect for food companies
- Half of Brits would stop buying food from a company acting unethically
- 37% think ethical standards are compromised in low-priced food
- Half of consumers see organic as too expensive to buy regularly
- A third of Brits think fair trade should be open to British producers
- 11% interested in edible insects
Awareness and Purchase of Ethical Foods
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- Free-range bought by most consumers
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- Figure 11: Awareness of ethical food certifications/logos and terms, March 2015
- Red tractor lags behind
- A future for free-range dairy?
- Fair trade products bought by more consumers than organic
- Freedom Food awareness stands at just 40%
- Pole & Line and MSC have about the same level of awareness
- Demographics – key findings
Perceived Importance of Ethical Food Company Attributes
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- Animal welfare most widely seen as an important ethical aspect for food companies
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- Figure 12: Perceived importance of ethical business attributes (any ranking 1-5), March 2015
- Avoidance of taxes is not so emotive for consumers after all
- Worker welfare ranks highly for consumers
- Charitable giving not seen as important for an ethical business
Attitudes towards Ethical Food
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- 52% would stop buying food from a company acting unethically
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- Figure 13: Attitudes towards ethical food, March 2015
- Only one in four willing to pay more for on-pack certification…
- …but half would pay more if they knew where the extra money went
- 37% think ethical standards are compromised in low-priced food
Attitudes towards Organic and Fair Trade Food
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- Half of organic buyers see organic as too expensive to buy regularly
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- Figure 14: Further attitudes towards ethical food, March 2015
- A third of Brits think British goods should be able to carry the Fairtrade Mark
- Just one in four trust that extra money paid for fair trade goes to supporting producers
Perceptions of Innovative Food Production Methods
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- Methodology
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- Figure 15: Correspondence map of perceptions of novel food types, March 2015
- Figure 16: Perceptions of novel food types, March 2015
- Edible insects garner the highest interest in trial
- EU considers changes to the law on the sale of edible insects
- Only a quarter see GM food as dangerous
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Abbreviations
Appendix – Market Size and Forecast
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- Figure 17: Best- and worst-case forecasts for food and drink products sold under selected leading ethical labels*, 2010-20
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Appendix – Perceptions of Innovative Food Production Methods
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