Horsemeat scandal: Shoppers study labels

MORE than half of consumers have changed their shopping habits as a result of the horsemeat scandal, a survey for consumer group Which? has found.

Public trust in the food industry has dropped by 24 per cent. with 30 per cent of those polled now buying less processed meat and a quarter buying fewer ready meals with meat in or choosing vegetarian options.

The survey, conducted late last month, also revealed that two-thirds of people do not think the government has been giving enough attention to enforcing labelling laws, with half of consumers not confident that ingredient information is accurate.

It found that 44 per cent now spend more time looking at the ingredients label on meat products, with 83 per cent agreeing that country-of-origin labelling should be required.

Richard Lloyd of Which? said: “The horsemeat scandal exposed the need for urgent changes to the way food fraud is detected and standards are enforced.”