Half of England doesn't know a "made in England" label can contain imported ingredients

Key findings

• 50% of adults in England didn't know a product can be labelled "made in England" when some or all of its ingredients come from outside England. 39% did know and 11% weren't sure.
• The North East has the biggest gap (61% didn't know). Greater London has the smallest (43%).
• Women (55%) were more likely than men (44%) not to know. Over-55s (55%) were more likely than 25 to 34 year olds (42%).
• It sits alongside two other blind spots: 33% have no idea what share of food is bought from foreign-owned supermarkets, and 32% have no idea how many countries a typical ready meal's ingredients come from.

What the label actually means

A "made in England" claim describes where a product was made. It does not say where the ingredients were grown or reared, with one exception, below. A chutney cooked in Devon from Dutch onions, Spanish tomatoes and Indian sugar can carry the label without breaking any rule.

Since 1 April 2020, if a pack states an origin and its main ingredient comes from somewhere else, the label must say where that ingredient is from, or that it is not from the place named (Regulation 2018/775, kept in UK law after Brexit). Other ingredients can come from anywhere without a mention. In practice the note tends to be in small print on the back, and the survey suggests most people have never read it.

Asked directly whether they knew the label could include imported ingredients, 39% of adults in England said yes. 50% said they didn't realise, and 11% weren't sure.

Who is most in the dark

The North East has the biggest gap: 61% of people there didn't know, against 43% in Greater London. The South East (54%) and Yorkshire (53%) come next. Among cities, Newcastle had the highest share who didn't know (60%) and Norwich the lowest (45%). City figures, and those for smaller regions such as the North East, are based on small subsamples and should be read as indicative. Base sizes are in the full data tables.

Women were more likely than men not to know (55% against 44%), and older people more than younger. 55% of over-55s didn't know, compared with 42% of 25 to 34 year olds, the best-informed age group.

The wider blind spot

The labelling gap sits alongside two others. A third of adults (33%) have no idea what share of the food bought in England is purchased from foreign-owned supermarkets and retailers. Among those who did put a number on it, the average guess was 26%. MadeInEngland.com's Who Owns Your Basket study traces 102 everyday supermarket brand lines back to who owns them and where they are made.

A similar share (32%) have no idea how many countries the ingredients in a typical supermarket ready meal come from. Those who guessed put it at five on average, with 3 to 5 the most common answer (39%).

On both questions it was the over-55s who were most likely to say they had no idea (41% each) and the 18 to 24s who were least likely (21% and 18%).

Methodology

The research was conducted by Censuswide among a sample of 2,001 adults in England, nationally representative of those aged 18 and over. Fieldwork ran from 13 to 16 April 2026. Censuswide is a member of the Market Research Society and the British Polling Council and a signatory of the Global Data Quality Pledge, and abides by the MRS Code of Conduct and ESOMAR principles. Survey reference J17714CWMP. Full results for all 20 questions.

Notes for editors

The full data tables (Excel), including breakdowns by gender, age, region and nearest city, can be downloaded. Charts and figures may be reproduced with credit to Made in England Research. Please link to the page you took them from. Marcus Holland, founder of MadeInEngland.com, is available for interview and further comment. Contact: marcus@madeinengland.com, 07983 818291.