We do like getting our oats in the morning

The study, by deals, offers and discounts website www.vouchercloud.com, looked at favoured breakfast options around the regions of the UK, and found that one in five of those living north of the border liked to begin the day with a bowl of porridge.

According to the poll, half of Britons don’t eat breakfast at home, and those who purchase breakfast instead of taking something from home typically spend £95.20 per month.

According to the research, full English breakfasts, granola and cereal are the most popular breakfast choices amongst Britons, although one in seven admits to regularly skipping the most important meal of the day.

The study was part of an ongoing probe into Britons’ daily expenditure on food and drink, with 2318 Britons aged 18 and over quizzed about their habits, with a particular focus on the expenditure incurred.

Initially all respondents were asked: ‘When you have breakfast, do you tend to have it home or on the go?’ to which almost half of respondents (46 per cent), stated they ‘have breakfast at home’, with further respondents stating they ‘have it on the go’ (31 per cent) or ‘have it at work’ (23 per cent). All respondents who stated they have breakfast either on the go or at work were asked whether they took it with them from home, or whether they purchased some whilst out and about, to which the majority of respondents ( 69 per cent) admitted they purchased breakfast once they’d left the house.

Respondents who purchased breakfast to either eat on the go or when they get into the office were asked how many times per week they purchased it and the average cost per breakfast. Once all of the responses were collated it was revealed that those who purchase breakfast typically do so four times per week, spending £5.95 per go – that equates to £23.80 per week, £95.20 per month and £1142.40 per year.

According to the poll, one in seven respondents ( 14 per cent), admitted that more often than not they end up skipping breakfast, with the top reasons why being cited as ‘I’m in a rush and don’t have time’ (29 per cent), ‘I oversleep’ (23 per cent) or ‘I’m not typically hungry first thing in the morning’ (19%).

Chris Johnson, Head of Operations at vouchercloud.com, described the fact that some people spend almost £100 a month on breakfast as “madness”.

He said: “You can buy enough cereal to last months, if not a year, at that cost. Imagine if those people got up a little earlier each day and made themselves breakfast, what they could do with that extra £100 per month! Have a few social nights out, go out to dinner on more than one occasion – or one fancy occasion – or even save it up and have over £1000 to play with at the end of the year.”