The majority of consumers put price as the key driver when buying food, new research from the National Office of Animal Health (Noah) has found.
The study, carried out on a panel of 1,007 consumers by IGD ShopperVista in autumn last year, saw 53% put price as the most important factor when shopping, with 35% saying it was price and 32% familiarity with the product.
The use-by/sell-by date was also selected as most important by 32% of consumers, with taste and smell the top choice of 26%.
The importance of special deals is clearly important as 23% of consumer put promotions as the key driver in purchasing decisions. The origin of the food and products produced more ethically were only the main differentiating factor for 17% and 16% of the shoppers respectively.
The research also asked the consumers who they trusted for accurate information about food, with the FSA coming out on top being chosen by 32% of respondents, up 2% compared to 2012 when the research was also carried out.
Defra also did well, increasing 7% to 19%, while animal welfare bodies were up 3% at 8%.
Consumer groups fell 4% to 8% and butchers were down 6% to 6%, and even farmers fell 4% to 4%.
Perhaps surprisingly, supermarkets were more trusted, rising 2% to 4%.