Nutri-Score and Eco-Score: Consumers' trade-offs when facing two sustainability labels

Jürkenbeck, Kristin; Sanchez-Siles, Luisma; Siegrist, Michael

doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2024.105200

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…In addition, an important area for future research will be understanding the nutritional implications of sustainability labeling. A recent experimental study in Germany that tested both a Nutri-score Label and an eco-Score label found that the labels influenced each other’s perceived healthfulness and sustainability, potentially resulting in inaccurate perceptions [ 49 ]. For example, French fries that displayed both an eco-score label and a Nutri-score label were perceived as healthier than fries that displayed only a Nutri-score label.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of an eco-score label on US consumers’ perceptions of environmental sustainability and intentions to purchase food: A randomized experiment

Taillie,

Wolfson,

Prestemon

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

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Front-of-package labels indicating a product’s environmental footprint (i.e., eco-score labels) offer promise to shift consumers towards more sustainable food choices. This study aimed to understand whether eco-score labels impacted consumers’ perceptions of environmental sustainability and intentions to purchase sustainable and unsustainable foods. US parents (n = 1,013) completed an online experiment in which they were shown 8 food products (4 sustainable and 4 unsustainable). Participants were randomized to a control (n = 503, barcode on product packaging) or eco-score label group (n = 510, eco-score label on product packaging). The eco-score label was color-coded with a grade of A-F based on the product’s environmental footprint, where “A” indicates relative sustainability and “F” indicates relative unsustainability. Participants rated each product’s environmental sustainability and their future likelihood of purchase. We used multilevel mixed-effects linear regression models and examined moderation by product category and sociodemographic characteristics. The eco-score label lowered perceived sustainability of unsustainable products by 13% in relative terms or -0.4 in absolute terms (95% CI -0.5, -0.3; p<0.001). The eco-score label increased perceived sustainability of sustainable products by 16% in relative terms or 0.6 in absolute terms (95% CI 0.5, 0.7, p<0.001). Effects on purchase intentions were smaller, with a 6% decrease for unsustainable products (p = 0.001) and an 8% increase for sustainable products (p<0.001). For unsustainable products, the effect of eco-score labels on sustainability perceptions was greater for older adults, men, participants with higher educational attainment, and participants with higher incomes. For sustainable products, the effect of ecolabels on sustainability perceptions was greater for those with higher educational attainment. Eco-score labels have the potential to direct consumers towards more sustainable products. Future studies should investigate eco-score label effectiveness on behavioral outcomes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%