A new survey has revealed that nearly two thirds of all workers dine at their desks at lunchtime, on a daily basis. The survey, which was conducted by food company John West, discovered that the majority of workers (61%), admitted that the recession impacted on their lunchtime options and that they are “more conscious of value as a result”. According to the survey, the most appealing thing of “al desco” dining is its “cost effectiveness”, while the biggest drawback was deemed to be a “lack of a break from the working day”. Taste was the most important factor when choosing a lunchtime option receiving 65% of the vote with nutrition scoring 46%. If buying lunch out, over half of the respondents (54%), said that would spend less than €5, with only 10% prepared to spend €7 or more. Deli counters are the most popular option (65%) for those that haven’t brought in a lunch, with dining in a restaurant/coffee shop getting just 13% of the vote. The vast majority of respondents said that they have basic kitchen facilities (microwave, toaster and kettle) available to them in the workplace. Over half (53%) of respondents said that they sometimes consider ‘al desco’ dining options when shopping at the weekend, but are usually only organised at the beginning of the week – never the full week.