New study shows consumers prefer handmade food and drink

When it comes to food and drink, Britons prefer handmade products that have been uniquely crafted by skilled specialists, believing them to be of a higher quality than machine made equivalents.

According to an independent nationwide study commissioned by Costa Coffee, a third of consumers admitted they were now buying more handmade items than a year ago with 40% saying they would be happy to spend more for handmade goods despite difficult financial times.

A quarter of these people said they would even spend up to 20% more. Around 60% of people said handmade equals a higher quality, and when it comes to food and drink will taste better.

In terms of coffee 47% of respondents say it tastes better when prepared by hand, by a skilled barista, compared to just 11% who are happy to settle for machine-produced drinks.

Helen Carnac, who has written a report for Costa based on the findings, said: "Handmade items not only are bespoke and individual to the person they're made for, they also give people the opportunity to engage more with the ingredients that they are made from and to understand more about their history and the process that goes into making them.

"Despite the recession, the research identifies that people search out quality, unique products rather than those made in automated 'factory line' type of process."

Words: Clare Riley

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