Can the Educationally Disadvantaged Interpret the FDA-Mandated Nutrition Facts Panel in the Presence of an Implied Health Claim?

Abstract

The authors conduct afield experiment to investigate whether fears regarding the misleading effects of implied health claims, especially in educationally disadvantaged populations, are well founded. Results show that, regardless of educational attainment, consumers seem capable of evaluating the nutrition facts panel, even in the presence of a contradictory implied health claim.

Genetically modified food labeling: The impacts of message and messenger on consumer perceptions of labels and products

“…Related veins of literature examine consumers' ability to use existing GM (Noussair et al, 2002) and nutrition labeling (Cotugna and Vickery, 1998;Kristal et al, 1998;Nayga, 2000;Obayashi et al, 2003) and the social efficacy of other food labeling interventions such as warnings (Bushman, 1998), health claims (Roe et al, 1999;Mitra et al, 1999;Wansink, 2003;Kozup et al, 2003;Garretson and Burton, 2000;Caswell et al, 2003), and the nutrition facts panel Burton et al, 1999;Levy et al, 1996).…”

Perception of Health Claims Among Nordic Consumers

“…Issues addressed have been the effects of health claims on overall product evaluations and purchase intentions (e.g., Garretson and Burton 2000;Lyly et al 2007), on product sales (e.g., Mathios 1991, 1994), and on inferences about other product attributes (e.g., Andrews et al 1998;Mitra et al 1999;Roe et al 1999). Also, the possible reciprocal impact of health claims and nutrition information has been analysed (e.g., Ford et al 1996;Kozup et al 2003;Mazis and Raymond 1997).…”

Consumers’ valuation of nutritional information: A choice experiment study

“…Szykman, Bloom, and Levy (1997) analysed the factors affecting claim and nutrition label use and the possible positive correlation between them. Ford, Hastak, Mitra, and Ringold (1996), Keller, Landry, Olson, and Velliquette (1997), and Mitra, Manoj, Ford, and Ringold (1999) focussed on examining the ability of consumers to interpret nutrition label in the presence of a health and/or nutrition claim. Finally, Garretson and Burton (2000), Roe, Levy, and Derby (1999), and Kozup, Creyer, and Burton (2003) studied the effect of nutrition information contained in both, nutrition labels and claims on consumers' attitudes and purchase intentions, and the possible interaction between them.…”