Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-31

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)

Most countries nowadays made it accessible for people to buy their groceries. Supermarkets in most parts of the world provides the needs of the community. It is usually a one stop shop for grocery shoppers. It offers a lot of option for meat, vegetables, fruits, grains, bread, etc. Supermarket's even offer deals, discounts, and use membership points to entice the consumers. It has both positive and negative development.

One negative effect concerns the local vendors in wet markets. These are the small business owner who sell fresh goods directly to the consumer. The presence of supermarkets overshadow the local business owners which I believe gives imbalance to the local economy of countries. Another negative effect is the use of chemicals to most processgoods in the supermarket. It makes the food produce unhealthy because these items are not fresh and they contain chemicals that helps them store for longer life before consumption.

On the contrary, one positive development is that supermarkets are big help to countries with harsh environment. Example is Canada who have longer winters. They do not have wet markets during this season, thus big grocery stores are essential to their way of living. In that regard, options for fresh goods are at minimum because during winter months most of the food items need to be stored longer.

In conclusion, there are positive and negative developments for buyings food products from supermarkets. It mainly depends on the location of the consumer and their preference. In some countries, they have no option for wet markets so they have to go with what is available.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You discuss both disadvantages and advantages, and your examples about wet-market vendors and Canada’s winters are relevant to the topic. However, the response does not clearly answer whether access to food from around the world is, overall, a positive or negative development. The introduction says it has “both positive and negative” effects, while the conclusion says the outcome depends on location and preference, leaving your overall position unresolved. Some points also need fuller explanation: for example, you claim supermarkets “overshadow” local businesses but do not show how this affects livelihoods or the wider economy. The discussion of chemicals is also broad and not clearly connected to food imported from different countries. State a definite overall view and develop each main reason with a specific explanation or example.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, separate paragraphs for disadvantages and an advantage, and a conclusion. Signposting such as “One negative effect” and “On the contrary” helps readers follow the shift between ideas. However, the progression within paragraphs is sometimes loose. The opening lists supermarket services and promotions without clearly linking them to your answer, and the Canada example moves from winter conditions to limited fresh goods without fully explaining the connection to international food availability. The conclusion largely repeats the mixed position rather than drawing the discussion together. Use clearer links between each claim and its explanation, and make the final paragraph reinforce one consistent overall judgement.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a relevant range of topic vocabulary, including “local vendors,” “wet markets,” “membership points,” and “harsh environment,” which helps communicate the subject. Some less common expressions are attempted, but several choices are inaccurate or unnatural, such as “gives imbalance to the local economy,” “processgoods,” and “options for fresh goods are at minimum.” There is also repetition of general terms such as “food,” “goods,” and “development,” which limits precision. Aim for more natural collocations and specific wording—for instance, describe supermarkets as “undermining local businesses” or say that fresh produce is “in limited supply.” Proofread compound words and choose vocabulary that precisely expresses the relationship you intend.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You use both short statements and some longer structures, including “These are the small business owner who sell fresh goods directly to the consumer” and the sentence beginning “In some countries, they have no option…”. Meaning is generally understandable, but errors in agreement, articles, plurals, and verb forms occur across the response. For example, “Supermarkets … provides” should have a plural verb, and “small business owner who sell” needs plural forms or a singular construction. “It has both positive and negative development” also needs a more accurate noun form and agreement. Some sentence patterns are repetitive, and the longer sentences would benefit from more controlled clause structure. Review subject–verb agreement and singular/plural forms, then check each sentence for a complete, consistent grammatical pattern.

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.