Seven in 10 Czech households grow their own food, survey finds

Seven in 10 Czech households grow at least some of their own food, reflecting a widespread preference for fresh produce, gardening and sharing food with others.

A new survey by the Public Opinion Research Center (CVVM) found that 62 percent of respondents grow food in a garden, while another 8 percent use an apartment or balcony. A further 6 percent do not currently grow anything but plan to start.

Fewer than one-quarter of respondents neither grow food nor intend to do so.

Home food production varies considerably depending on where people live and whether they have access to a garden.

In municipalities with fewer than 2,000 residents, 86 percent of respondents said they grow food in a garden. The share falls to 38 percent in cities with populations above 200,000.

Prague recorded one of the lowest rates in the country. Only 33 percent of residents grow food in a garden, while another 15 percent grow something inside their home or on a balcony.

By contrast, garden cultivation is particularly common in the Pardubice Region, where 75 percent of respondents grow food, and the South Bohemian Region, at 73 percent.

Retirement-age respondents were also more likely than younger people to produce food in a garden.

Freshness was the most frequently cited reason for growing food, mentioned by 73 percent of growers. More than half, 52 percent, said they wanted healthy food, while 43 percent viewed gardening as a hobby. Saving money was a motivation for 32 percent.

Homegrown food is a significant source of household supplies for only a minority of respondents.

Eight percent said their own production covers most of their food consumption, while 23 percent estimated that it provides approximately half.

For 44 percent of growers, home production is primarily supplementary. Another 24 percent described its role as seasonal.

Sharing is also a central part of Czech home-growing culture. Nearly eight in 10 growers give away or exchange at least some of what they produce, most commonly with two or three other people.

Two-thirds of respondents said they receive homegrown or homemade food from close family members. Half receive it from friends, 39 percent from more distant relatives and 37 percent from neighbors.

Growers also show a stronger interest in locally produced food. Fifty-two percent said the subject interests them, compared with 37 percent of people who do not grow food. Regular purchasing of local products was also more common among growers.

The survey questioned 1,031 people age 15 and older from mid-July through early August. CVVM cautioned that the findings should not be directly compared with earlier surveys because its research methodology has changed.