Paddington Bear can breathe a sigh of relief: new figures indicate Britons are rolling up their sleeves to make their own marmalade.

New Waitrose figures provide a vote of confidence for the Great British breakfast spread – and help allay fears of its decline.

The supermarket’s sales of Seville oranges are up 30% year-on-year as more people take a DIY approach to marmalade.

Reports earlier this month warned the breakfast staple was being ousted from shopping baskets by chocolate spread and peanut butter.

But Waitrose sales figures suggest Britain’s taste for marmalade is increasingly being satisfied by homemade varieties.

Shoppers have bought 30% more Seville oranges since the fruit arrived in Waitrose stores on January 7th compared to the same period of 2010.

Online searches for Waitrose.com marmalade recipes jumped 80% in the first fortnight of January compared to the same period last year.

Waitrose Home Baking Buyer Christopher Moore said: “We are delighted that customers are having a go at making their own marmalade.

“This breakfast spread is a Great British tradition and there’s nothing quite like it on toast in the morning. It’s important that younger cooks discover the pleasure of making and eating marmalade.”

Sales of pectin, a marmalade ingredient, were 40% higher last week than the same period of 2010.

And Waitrose sales of fruit sugar and preserving sugar were up 15% and 11% respectively, year-on-year.

Assorted orange marmalade recipes on Waitrose.com, the supermarket’s website, got thousands of searches in the first fortnight of January.

Seville oranges make the clearest, tangiest marmalade but are usually available in UK stores for just three weeks in January.

This weekend (January 22) is expected to be the busiest of the year for making marmalade at home before the Seville oranges season ends.

Fans who miss out on buying Seville oranges can turn to Waitrose.com for other marmalade recipes.

Waitrose is the only UK supermarket selling 100% organic Seville oranges.