Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-08-17

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)

Food is a basic need for all the creatures on the earth such as humans, animals, bird etc. It is often argues that in many countries consumers can go to a supermarket and buy food produced all over the world. I think it is considered as the positive development. This essay will discuss all the facts and argument related to the topic.

In this segment of the essay, I will discuss some positive points of imported food items. People can have variety of choices to purchase in a supermarket, whereas in the past people did not have numerous options to choose , therefore they had to buy things from the local market. For instance, people in present can buy international imported items such as Japanese noodles, Mexican sauces , Italian pasta etc. from the supermarket.

Furthermore, people can learn about the different cultural dishes and gain interest in international food. In addition, it provides opportunity to the countries farmers, businessman to gain profit by exporting their items to different nations.

Conversely, it have some negative points by importing the items at a major scale it requires hefty amount of fuel and carbon emission increases it results in air pollution. It also affects the local market because of foreign food items people interested more in that giving less preferences to the local market. However, this issue can be solve using the eco-friendly transportation methods and giving more attention to local traditional foods.

To conclude, international food has some negative points but positive points are in majority which cannot be ignored.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses the prompt by discussing both the positive and negative aspects of global food trade. However, the development of ideas is somewhat superficial. For example, the mention of 'carbon emission' and 'local market' impact is relevant but lacks depth or specific examples to fully support the argument. The position is clear, but the essay structure is quite basic, and the introduction is slightly repetitive, merely restating the prompt rather than providing a strong thesis statement. To reach a higher band, you should expand on your points with more detailed explanations or real-world examples to demonstrate a more thorough exploration of the topic.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, each with a clear focus. Cohesive devices such as 'Furthermore', 'In addition', and 'Conversely' are used to link ideas. However, the flow is sometimes mechanical, and the transitions between sentences could be smoother. For instance, the transition between the benefits of variety and the economic benefits for farmers is abrupt. Additionally, the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as in the sentence 'it have some negative points by importing the items', where the subject 'it' is ambiguous. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring clear pronoun reference would enhance the overall coherence.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task, allowing the writer to convey their meaning clearly. You use some topic-specific terms like 'imported food items', 'carbon emission', and 'eco-friendly'. However, the range is somewhat limited, and there are instances of awkward phrasing, such as 'all the creatures on the earth' and 'giving less preferences'. There is also a lack of more sophisticated or academic vocabulary that would elevate the essay. To improve, focus on using more precise collocations and a wider range of academic synonyms to avoid repetitive or simplistic language.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is generally clear, there are frequent grammatical errors that affect the quality of the writing. Examples include subject-verb agreement issues ('It is often argues', 'it have some negative points'), missing articles ('to the countries farmers'), and punctuation errors (spacing before commas). While these errors do not significantly impede communication, they are persistent throughout the text. To achieve a higher band, you need to demonstrate better control over basic grammar, particularly verb forms and pluralization, and attempt more complex sentence structures with greater accuracy.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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