People With Food Allergies Impacted By High Costs

People with food allergies and intolerances are impacted by high costs and lack of availability when buying 'free-from' food and drinks, according to new research published by the Consumer Council (CC).

The CC surveyed 1,000 consumers across Northern Ireland and held in-depth interviews with those working in the health sector, consumers with a hypersensitivity and those who buy free from products for lifestyle and health reasons, or due to environmental concerns.

Key findings of the research includes:

• Almost a third (30%) of consumers who purchase free-from food and drinks, do so because they or a family member has a food hypersensitivity

• Almost half (47%) of this group had experience of going without free-from food or drink products in the preceding 12 months

• Four in 10 (42%) of these consumers had to go without because an item was too expensive, in comparison to almost a third (32%) of those buying free-from products for other reasons

• Two-thirds (62%) of consumers with food hypersensitivity had to go without free-from products because they were unavailable in store

In-depth discussions with consumers revealed:

• Consumers buying for reasons of food hypersensitivity spoke of having to budget to buy free-from food and drinks, whilst others compensated by spending less on 'standard' or non-essential items like treats

• Value for money also came into question, with research participants pointing out that free-from pack sizes are often smaller, meaning they need to buy them in greater quantity, or more frequently, and at a price that is often higher than the 'standard' equivalent

• Research participants not only discussed the impact that high costs and availability can have on their finances, but also their health and emotional well-being

Commenting on the findings, Philippa McKeown-Brown, Head of Food Policy and Emerging Markets at the Consumer Council added: "Consumers' concerns about rising food prices and lack of availability are a recurring theme in the research we've undertaken in the last 18 months. We know from our latest Northern Ireland Household Expenditure Tracker this is particularly the case for low-income households who spend a greater proportion of their basic spend on food (20%) than higher earners (14%). For these consumers, spend on food is only fractionally lower than the combined costs of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels (20.2% versus 20.8%).

"In response to cost of living pressures, consumers are changing how they shop and what they buy. However, if your health, or the health of a loved one depends on buying only certain products, you are less able to shop around for a cheaper alternative. We are sharing these findings and recommendations to raise awareness on an issue which affects almost a third of Northern Ireland consumers."