When Detailed Information Works Better: Comparison of Three- and Five-Color/Letter Front-of-Package Nutrition Labels

Abstract

The adoption of front-of-package (FoP) nutrition labels to promote healthier food choices is increasing worldwide, yet it remains unclear which types of nutrition labels are superior from a public policy perspective. This research compares two common forms of evaluative FoP nutrition labels that vary in the number of colors and corresponding letters they display (three colors, A—C [3C] vs. five colors, A—E [5C]). Four studies, including a field study with vending machines and a study in an experimental supermarket using eye-tracking, show that compared with the 3C label and no label (control) conditions, the 5C label enhances purchase intentions and choices of healthy alternatives. In particular, the 5C nutrition label is superior because it provides more information that helps consumers discriminate the products’ healthiness. This ability to discriminate healthiness modifies consumers’ perceived healthiness of products and influences both their purchase intentions and choice of healthy food options.

Commentary: Food and Food Waste: Spinning a Two-Sided Coin

“…Consumers, firms, and policy makers approach food with multiple goals in mind (related to health, sustainability, safety, etc.). This notion is evident in the framings that emerge from Mesiranta, Närvänen, and Mattila's (2022) research and contrasts with the health lens adopted in Birau, Hildebrand, and Werle (2022) and Werle et al (2022). Indeed, a great deal of prior research on health marketing and nutrition adopts a health lens (i.e., how can we encourage healthy food consumption?…”

“…A Macro Through Micro Perspective Needs Greater Consideration in our Understanding of Food And Food Waste Consumer research on food and food waste tends to adopt the micro perspective and examine individual behavior, as exemplified by Birau, Hildebrand, and Werle (2022) and Werle et al (2022). But, as Mesiranta, Närvänen, and Mattila (2022) demonstrate, shifting to a meso and macro perspective helps illuminate important aspects of the food marketing system and their impact on FWB and food waste.…”

Exploring the perception of small and medium food enterprises in Lincolnshire, UK on the use of front‐of‐pack nutrition labels by consumers

“…The high cost of including FOP on all food products, a point raised by the SMEs in this study, is consistent with earlier studies (EHN, 2020). Moreover, the SMEs believed some of their food products that carry red lozenges may not be bought by consumers like other foods (Thow et al ., 2018; Werle et al ., 2022). Germany's food industry was also against TLs because most food businesses feared that consumers would be prejudiced against their products with red lozenges (Drescher et al ., 2014).…”

Counteracting noncommunicable diseases with front-of-pack nutritional labels' informativeness: an inquiry into the effects on food acceptance and portions selection

“…However, given the inconsistent outcomes of past research (Mazzù et al. , 2022b; Werle et al. , 2022) and the lack of consensus among member states and stakeholders, the European Union has postponed its decision on which unified front-of-pack nutritional labels to adopt to gather more evidence on the relative effectiveness of summary vs nutrient-specific labels (Morrison, 2022).…”

“…Front-of-pack nutritional labels belonging to these categories have been extensively studied and confronted by researchers to identify the best option to support European Union consumers towards healthier diets (Egnell et al, 2018a, b;Talati et al, 2018;Mazz u et al, 2021;Mazz u et al, 2022b;Pettigrew et al, 2023). However, given the inconsistent outcomes of past research (Mazz u et al, 2022b;Werle et al, 2022) and the lack of consensus among member…”