07/05/2007

Scottish shoppers are the least likely in UK to buy local food, according to a recent survey.

The new research shows that only six out of 10 Scots consider where their food has come from compared with eight out of 10 in the rest of the UK. The survey found that 56 per cent of consumers thought local food was it was important to them, while 46 per cent said it did not make any difference.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) report on consumer attitudes to buying locally-produced foods was commissioned to help assess whether it should devise an enforceable definition of what exactly 'local' produce is.

But the Scottish Association of Farmers’ Markets (SAFM) has voiced concerns over defining the word 'local' when many producers in Scotland have to travel longer distances to sell their produce at market.

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