Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 19 · 2026-10-20

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

Some consumers are increasingly choosing to buy goods that are produced in their local area, rather than imported goods.

What are the reasons for this?

Is this a positive or a negative trend?

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

Student answer (Band 6.5)

It has been recently observed that many consumers prefer locally produced goods to imported goods. As there are multiple causes for this trend, we will examine these in this essay along with its potential outcomes.

The primary reason behind individuals' incline towards indegenious goods is to support the local economy. Governments around the world always encourage the local production of goods instead of imported materials. The major reason behind this push from governments is to reduce the trade deficit of a country or economy. Therefore, adverstisements and other contents published by authorities persuade individuals to make a better informed purchasing that meets the interests of an area. A recent advertisement by Pakistan government, for example, to reduce the usage of imported chees to support the local diary business is a practical manifestation of this trend. Furthermore, secondary reason behind this phenomenon is the quality of a perishable item. Many imported fruits and vegetables are packed with preservatives before shipping to increase the shelf life of these items. Therefore, consumers choose vegetales from the local area as they are considered more fresh and free from preservatives.

I consider this trend negative because of multiple factors. Firstly, it contradicts the idea that today's world is a global village. Many factories and farmers suffer losses if their goods are not accepted by consumers in other countries or places; this eventually results in job losses. Other way around, a community who earns the livelihood through agriculture in the outskirts of a city would not successful to establish a factory for producing shoes because this is not the skill set the population holds. Secondly, consumers end up paying more for an item that could be easily be procured at a cheap cost from outside. For instance, producing rice in a moonsoon area is much less costly than using a soil where water is in scare resource.

In conclusion, it is the general consensus among experts that each area should produce goods which can be produced as per a particular community's skill-set and geographical factors, such as weather and land. This approach will help to reduce the cost a consumer bears to purchase a good.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both parts of the task: you explain support for the local economy and concerns about the freshness of imported produce, then state clearly that you view the trend negatively. The examples about Pakistan’s cheese campaign and rice production help make the discussion relevant. However, the negative position is not fully sustained by the reasoning: the point about overseas factories losing jobs is only briefly explained, and the comparison between agricultural communities and shoe production is difficult to connect directly to consumers choosing local goods. The conclusion also shifts towards recommending that areas specialise, rather than directly weighing the trend. More explicit links between each reason and your judgement, with fuller explanation of the examples, would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The essay has a clear overall structure, moving from reasons to your evaluation and then to a conclusion. Paragraphing is appropriate, and signposts such as “The primary reason,” “Firstly,” and “Secondly” help readers follow the main points. Some connections, however, feel mechanical or unclear. “Other way around” does not accurately introduce the contrast that follows, while “this trend” in the opening refers broadly to the topic without previewing the negative position. The final paragraph introduces specialisation and production costs without clearly tying them back to the earlier discussion. Use linking phrases that express the precise relationship between ideas, and make references explicit so the progression feels more continuous.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “trade deficit,” “preservatives,” “shelf life,” and “geographical factors.” These choices help communicate the economic and practical aspects of the issue, and you attempt some less common expressions. However, several inaccurate word choices or collocations reduce precision, such as “individuals’ incline,” “a better informed purchasing,” and “a practical manifestation.” There are also spelling errors, including “indegenious,” “adverstisements,” “chees,” and “vegetales.” These do not prevent understanding, but they make the writing less controlled. Aim for natural combinations such as “preference for locally produced goods” and proofread carefully, especially for frequently used topic words.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses beginning with “As” and “because,” and most ideas remain understandable. Some grammatical errors occur in longer constructions. For example, “a community … would not successful to establish” needs a correctly formed verb phrase, while “could be easily be procured” contains an unnecessary repeated verb. In “producing rice in a moonsoon area is much less costly than using a soil,” the comparison is not grammatically parallel, and the article and noun construction are also problematic. There are further issues with articles and agreement in phrases such as “secondary reason” and “a community … who earns.” Review verb forms, articles, and parallel comparisons to improve accuracy while retaining your complex structures.

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