Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-05

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many countries nowadays, consumers can go to a supermarket and buy food produced all over the world.

Do you think this is a positive or negative development?

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

In many nations nowadays, consumers can go to a supermarket and purchase food items produced across the world. While this trend offers several advantages, I believe it even brings some drawbacks, making it both a positive as well as negative development.

On the one hand, buying food from supermarkets can be seen as a positive development because it provides greater convenience. People with busy schedules can buy food from stores and eat without cooking at homes. For instance, old age people do not have the capability to go to the market, buy materials, and cook at home. Moreover, purchasing food from supermarkets provides an individual to get exposure to different foods available in different countries, especially for food lovers. People who want to eat food originated in different countries but are not capable of visiting other nations can get a taste of different nations.

On the other hand, there are several negative consequences of this trend. Firstly, this food contains a huge amount of preservatives. The foods are made to last for approximately 7 to 10 days, and that cannot be possible without preservatives. These preservatives can harm consumer's health and lead to several diseases, like cancer, heart disease, and so on. For example, recently, an experiment was done on McDonald's burger, a burger was kept in the fridge for one year, and it was fully fresh. This indicates the amount of preservatives are used in food products. Secondly, supermarkets sell this food at expensive rates. Food containing a lot of preservatives and import duties increases the price of individual items. It becomes difficult for a person to buy food.

In conclusion, although international food items in supermarkets provide convenience and exposure to foreign food, they also create challenges such as health issues due to preservatives and expensive rates. Therefore, I would consider this trend to be both a positive and negative development.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses both sides of the argument, acknowledging both the convenience of global food availability and the health/economic drawbacks. However, the development of ideas is somewhat uneven. The argument regarding 'old age people' is not entirely relevant to the topic of global food trade, as this relates more to convenience food in general rather than the international nature of the products. The example of the McDonald's burger is a bit anecdotal and lacks a strong link to the broader concept of global food supply chains. To reach a higher band, you should focus more on the implications of international trade, such as carbon footprints or local market competition, rather than just general processed food issues.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the positive and negative aspects. Cohesive devices such as 'On the one hand', 'Moreover', and 'Firstly' are used to guide the reader through the argument. However, the flow within paragraphs is occasionally mechanical, and some transitions feel a bit repetitive. Referencing is generally clear, though the connection between the idea of 'international food' and the specific health concerns could be more tightly linked to ensure a smoother progression of ideas throughout the text.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows for clear communication of your ideas. You use some topic-specific terms like 'preservatives', 'import duties', and 'convenience'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of slightly unnatural phrasing, such as 'provides an individual to get exposure' (should be 'allows individuals to gain exposure') and 'food originated in different countries' (should be 'food originating from'). To improve, try to incorporate more precise academic collocations and avoid repeating basic words like 'food' and 'different' too frequently.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are several grammatical inaccuracies. For example, 'old age people' should be 'elderly people', and 'the amount of preservatives are used' should be 'the amount of preservatives used'. There are also minor punctuation and article errors throughout the text. While these errors do not impede communication, they occur frequently enough to prevent a higher score. Focusing on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles would significantly enhance the accuracy of your writing.

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