Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-06
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)
With the recent developments, in many countries nowadays, consumers can buy international food by visiting supermarket. This is because of the friendly relationships between different countries of the world. This essay will discuss both positive and negative development before explaining why I believe that this is a beneficial for customers.
One of the positive impacts of visiting supermarket for purchasing foreign food items is that it is far more convenient and gives a lot of variety to consumers at one place. Individuals don't have to visit different countries to get their favorite products. For instance, nowadays, there is a variety of different cheese products produced by famous cheese manufacture countries like Netherland and New Zealand in India supermarkets as well. As a result, individual especially visit these supermarkets to buy essentials.
On the other hand, although these supermarkets provide comfort to its consumers to a great extent, they sell relatively expensive products due to their taxes and tariffs which falls indirectly on customers. For example, the dates which comes from Dubai to India are higher in price due to addition of taxes on it as compared to their original price in Dubai. Henceforth, it is not possible for people with low income group to spend on foreign food items.
To conclude, it is a great development between the nations and it is easier and convenient for public to shop from a supermarket as they provide a lot of different varieties and flexibility. Whereas, these are not ment for everyone as it can be heavy on the pocket for many people.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the positive and negative aspects of global food availability. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention convenience and variety as positives, and cost as a negative, the arguments could be more thoroughly extended with deeper analysis or more specific real-world implications. Your position is clear, but the conclusion is slightly repetitive of the body paragraphs rather than synthesizing the argument. To improve, ensure that each point is fully explored with a clear link back to the central question of whether this is a positive or negative development.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'On the other hand', 'For instance', and 'To conclude' to guide the reader. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally imprecise (e.g., 'these are not ment for everyone'—it is unclear if 'these' refers to the supermarkets or the food items). Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring that pronouns clearly refer to their antecedents would strengthen the flow of your writing.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, such as 'tariffs', 'flexibility', and 'essentials'. However, there are some word choice errors and awkward collocations, such as 'famous cheese manufacture countries' (should be 'cheese-producing countries') and 'heavy on the pocket' (which is an idiom that is slightly informal for an academic essay). Additionally, there are minor spelling errors like 'ment' instead of 'meant'. To reach a higher band, focus on using more precise academic vocabulary and ensuring correct word forms.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The essay uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors that occur throughout the text, such as subject-verb agreement issues ('the dates which comes' should be 'come') and article usage ('in India supermarkets' should be 'in Indian supermarkets'). While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding your meaning, they are frequent enough to limit the score. To improve, pay closer attention to pluralization, article usage, and verb agreement during your proofreading process.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.