Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-07

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)

Nowadays, In most of the countries poeple can go to a supermarket and buy food produced all over the world and in my view it is positive development because people can access variety of food choices rather than traditional food and they do not have to travel to other countries to try their local food.

For example, In Pakistan you can find many imported prodcuts to eat like Italian pizza, Japanese sushi or American Coffee without going in to the respective country which can give them taste of what other countries people are having and it is a good sign. Also, Pakistan imports its salt and food to other countries that can help in country's reputation and GDP.

One negative thing I must say is that many of Pakistan's local food comes from harvesting of agricultural fields by farmers and this is their bread and butter. They wait all season for crops to grow and then sell them to earn but If we focus more on the imported products and ignore the local foods than shopkeepers will not buy local stuff and this will impact the farmers community and they will stop growing crops in agricultural fields which is not a good sign because we will then not be able to import products to other countries.

In conclusion, I will say that there should be a balance between local products and imported products and shopkeepers should promote local prodcuts by giving discounts to customers and keep their price cheap from imported products.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is identifiable: you consider worldwide food availability positive, while recognising a possible cost to local farmers and recommending a balance. The examples of sushi, pizza and coffee help illustrate access to international foods. However, the response does not fully develop the positive case, and the claim that imports improve Pakistan’s reputation and GDP is asserted rather than explained. The discussion of farmers is relevant but its final point—that reduced local production would prevent exports—needs clearer reasoning. The response is 239 words, so it is 11 words below the required minimum; 13 words copied from the task prompt were not counted. Develop each main reason with a clearer explanation or specific example, and ensure the response meets the minimum length.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an opening position, a paragraph giving benefits, a paragraph acknowledging a drawback, and a conclusion proposing balance. This makes the main line of thought possible to follow. However, progression within paragraphs is sometimes unclear. For instance, the move from imported foods to Pakistan’s salt exports does not clearly connect to the benefit being discussed, and the final sentence of the farmers paragraph introduces exports without explaining the link. Connect each example explicitly to its main point, and use clearer paragraph development rather than relying mainly on “For example,” “Also,” and “In conclusion.” More precise referencing would also help readers follow what “this” and “they” refer to.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “imported products,” “agricultural fields,” “farmers,” and “customers.” The examples of different cuisines also make the discussion concrete. However, the range is limited and some wording is repetitive, particularly “food,” “products,” and “local.” There are also noticeable spelling and word-choice problems, such as “poeple,” “prodcuts,” and “cheap from,” which reduce accuracy and polish. Some expressions are understandable but imprecise, including “give them taste of what other countries people are having.” Build a wider set of accurate phrases for trade, consumer choice, and local agriculture, and check spelling and collocations during revision.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including a conditional idea in “if we focus more on the imported products … shopkeepers will not buy local stuff.” This shows an effort to explain consequences, and the overall meaning can generally be understood. However, complex sentences are often difficult to control: the long opening sentence joins several ideas without clear punctuation, and the farmers paragraph contains a lengthy chain of clauses that obscures the relationships between them. There are also errors with articles, agreement, and sentence boundaries, as in “it is positive development” and “what other countries people are having.” Use shorter, controlled sentences alongside complex ones, and check articles, possessives, and punctuation.

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