New survey suggests 38% of consumers have switched to free range chicken

A new survey suggests that 38% of consumers have switched from intensively farmed chicken to free-range since Channel 4 aired its Big Food Fight series last month.

However, despite Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Jamie Oliver’s campaign to raise poultry farming standards, 36% of respondents said they are determined to continue buying intensively-farmed chickens for the foreseeable future.

These consumers explained that the increased profile surrounding chicken farming methods had not made an impact on them.

The research carried out by G2 Data Dynamics also shows that people living in semi-detached housing are more likely to go “free-range” than those living in any other type of housing in the UK. The company believes this indicates that the “keeping up with the Jones'” mentality is still alive and well in the UK.

The most conscious age groups have been identified as the over 75s, 65-74s and 25-34s, with 41% of each age group altering their shopping habits from regularly buying intensively farmed to free-range chicken.

Bucking the trend, however, is the 40% of UK men who are sticking resolutely to buying intensively farmed meat.