Only 20% express full confidencein non-EU food

Fewer than one in five Irish consumers have full confidence in fresh food imported from outside the EU, according to research published yesterday.

However, the survey also found that while 60 per cent of consumers almost always considered the origin of food when shopping, only 23 per cent did so when eating out.

The survey was carried out this month for Agri Aware, the farming and food educational body. It found that 67 per cent of people believed it was "extremely" or "very" important to know the country of origin of the food they ate.

Some 19 per cent said they were "very" or "extremely" confident in food imported from non-EU states.

This compares with 67 per cent who expressed full confidence in food produced here.

When asked to explain their lack of confidence in imported food, almost one quarter said they did not trust it or did not have enough information. Others questioned the freshness of imported food, and expressed concern about additives, chemicals and preservatives.

Some 7 per cent said they were "not very" or "not at all" confident in Irish-produced food. Asked for their reasons, 22 per cent said they were not sure that the food was produced here. Some 13 per cent blamed overpricing.

Meanwhile more than half said they were not happy with the "country-of-origin" labelling of beef in restaurants.

Since last month restaurants must display the country of origin of beef on the menu. Just 20 per cent of those surveyed said the menus were adequately labelled, while 53 per cent said the labelling was inadequate.

Almost 35 per cent said shops were not adequately labelling fresh food products with the country of origin.

Friends First economist and Agri Aware board member Jim Power said this raised serious concerns about the new labelling regulations.

"Irish consumers are clearly being conned by restaurants not providing adequate country-of-origin information. When the menu is not adequately labelled most consumers believe the food to be of Irish origin. This is not only misleading, it is also a breach of consumers' trust."

Of those who did not consider the country of origin when eating out, 58 per cent said they presumed the food was Irish.

Mr Power said there was an onus on all food retailers to provide enough labelling information to allow consumers to make an informed decision.

Meanwhile, 80 per cent of the 1,000 people surveyed across the State said the agriculture and food sector was still either "extremely" or "very" important to the economy. Asked why it was so important, most said it supported rural jobs or supported local produce.

They also cited the importance of having a guaranteed supply of safe food. However, just 11 per cent said agriculture was still the main industry or backbone of the economy. Some 2 per cent said the economy depended on it.

Can we eat ourselves healthy?:

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