Our latest consumer research reveals that just 46% of adults aged 18+ reported poorer availability of some food and groceries in-store or online recently. This remains one of the lowest levels recorded since first measured in 2021.

This compares with a high of 77% reporting poorer availability a year ago. This was linked to extreme weather conditions in Spain and North Africa affecting harvests and resulted in some supermarkets introducing limits on certain fruits and vegetables.

Availability concerns remain relatively low across a range of categories. This is most pronounced for fresh produce and dairy when compared to last year.

19% complained about the poorer availability of fresh produce recently. This is more than half the level reported this time last year (40%). 11% complain about the availability of dairy compared to 40% in 2023.

Availability concerns by region

Consumers in Northern Ireland (60%) continue to report the poorest availability overall. This compares with 43% in Yorkshire and Humberside and 34% in Eastern England.

IGD Viewpoint
Just-in-time delivery leaves little room to accommodate supply chain shocks or unexpected surges in demand. A more volatile global economy may justify reworking systems to give greater weight to availability, stockholding, and resilience.

Download our recent Viewpoint report: a system under pressure, in which we highlight the 10 key risks that are likely to put the UK food system under greater pressure in the years to come.

Mitigating these risks will require a vast range of actions resulting in many significant changes, between sectors and within specific businesses.