The European Consumer and Nutrition Information on Label

1
The European Consumer and Nutrition Information
on Label
Corvinus University May 5th 2009
Dr. Josephine M. Wills Director General European
Food Information Council Belgium www.eufic.org
Prof. Klaus G. Grunert MAPP Centre for Research
on Customer Relations in the Food
Sector University of Aarhus Denmark
2
Main research questions

• How good is consumers nutrition knowledge?
• To what extent do consumers use nutrition labels
  when shopping?
• To what extent are consumers aware of different
  labelling systems, understand them and are able
  to use them?

3
Basic study design
Observation at aisle (approx. 3 minutes per
shopper)
In-store Interview (approx. 5-7 minutes per
shopper)
In-home self-complete Questionnaire (approx.
30-40 minutes to complete)

• Looked at label and where
• Time spent choosing
• Number of products handled

• Whether respondent claims to have looked at
  nutrition information on the label
• Remembers any nutrition information from
  the label
• Which nutrition information looking for
• Time pressure during shopping
• Major determinants of choice (nutrition,
  taste, convenience)
• Some nutrition knowledge questions

• Nutrition knowledge questions
• Awareness, knowledge proficiency in using
  nutrition labelling system (eg GDA, Health
  logo, colour-coding, back of pack nutrition
  table).
• Background variables
• Demographics
• Health

4
Methodology

• Pan-European study UK, France, Germany, Poland,
  Sweden, Hungary
• Fieldwork TNS for UK other countries -
  Synovate, GfK, Pentor, Norstat, Corvinus
  University/Focus Studio
• Pilot studies UK (Nov 07, Jan/Feb 08) and
  discussions with key stakeholders, nutritionists
  and consumer scientists
• Research in field February 2008 - February 2009
• Shoppers observed at 6 product categories
• salty snacks soft drinks yoghurts
• breakfast cereals ready meals confectionery
• Each country, sample size minimum 1800 in store
  interviews, target 1080 in home questionnaires.
  Incentivised. Over 11,600 in-store interviews,
  over 5,700 in-home questionnaires returned

5
Retailers labelling systems
Different retailers and nutrition labelling
systems. Good geographical spread
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How good is consumers nutrition knowledge?
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Nutrition knowledge Key conclusions

• Reasonably good knowledge about what experts
  recommend, but tendency to exaggerate with regard
  to foods to be avoided
• Over 95 respondents knew experts recommend we
  should eat more fruit and veg
• Reasonable command of calories, including calorie
  content of foods but a majority of consumers tend
  to under-estimate calorie needs and calorie use
• More than one third of respondents think children
  need more calories than an adult man
• Total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, and omega-3
  are better understood than PUFA, MUFA
• Starchy foods such as bread, rice, pasta and
  potatoes are not well understood, less than 33
  answering correctly that they should eat a lot of
  these types of foods

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Nutrition knowledge index
Affects looking for NI in some countries,
awareness and understanding of systems, and
ability to use to make healthier choices
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To what extent do consumers use nutrition labels
when shopping?
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Handling of products Time spent
Respondents spend on average 30 secs per product
choice
seconds

• More than 60 of respondents look at front of
  pack
• Few respondents ( 15 ) look elsewhere on pack
• Majority spend most time looking at ready meal
  category

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Main reasons for product choice

• Taste the main reason for product choice in all
  product categories in Germany, Sweden, Hungary
  and Poland
• In France, family wants equally important for
  breakfast cereals
• In UK, convenience most important for ready
  meals, health/nutrition most important for
  breakfast cereals and yoghurts, taste for other
  three categories

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What nutrition information did they look for?

• Calories most cited in 3 of 6 countries
• except UK and Germany (fat, then calories) and
  Sweden (sugar, fat)
• highest in Poland (66), lowest in Sweden (17)
• Fat among top 3 in all countries except Hungary
• Saturated fat, and salt, not among top 5 in any
  country except UK
• Sugar among top 5 in all countries
• Carbohydrates among top 5 in all countries except
  UK and Poland
• Other top 5 mentions Food additives (Hungary,
  France, Poland), Fibre (Sweden), Protein
  (Hungary), Vitamins (Poland), Organic (Germany)

13
Did you look for any nutrition information on the
packaging?

Less than 27 said they looked for nutrition
information

• These figures are supported by respective
  respondents being able to
• name at least one nutrient and
• show where on the pack that info is found

14
Where did they look for the nutrition information?
of respondents who said they have looked for NI
More likely to look for NI when product has
healthy image (yoghurt, cereals), and if better
nutrition knowledge
15
To what extent are consumers aware of labelling
systems, understand them and are able to use them?
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Awareness and subjective understanding - GDA
heard of
seen before

FR,SE
Subjective understanding
DE (5.3)
PL (7.1)
extremely well
not at all
10
1
HU
UK
17
Systems using colour-coded levels UK and France
Nutri-pass, a colour-coded GDA system
(Intermarché, France)
Examples of TL systems, UK
GDA/TL hybrid system, UK
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Awareness and subjective understanding colour
coding

• In UK, majority of shoppers say they have heard
  of (79) or seen the TL system (81)
• In France, minority of shoppers have heard of
  (15) or seen (23) the colour coding system
  (Nutri-pass)
• Irrespective of awareness, subjective
  understanding is high (6.7 in France, 6.9 in UK)

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Understanding of concept GDAs
Complete the sentence GDA indicates, as a
percentage of an adult's daily needs, the level
of nutrients ...
A In 100g of the food
B In a serving of the food
C Both of the above answers are correct
D None of these answers is correct
respondents
20
Understanding of conceptGDAs
If a food label says the average adult guideline
daily amount for fat is 70 g, what do you think
this means?
Correct answer An average adult should eat no
more than 70 g fat a day

21
Understanding of concept TL in UK
Q Which of the following statements do you think
best describes what each colour means?
The correct answer is indicated by the pattern
Note multiple answers marked, even though
instruction was to mark only one answer per colour

22
Understanding of GDA label on one productUK
example
Q Which of the following statements applies to
this label?
Tesco/Sainsburys

Overall, 50-74 of shoppers were able to
correctly interpret GDA labels except for Poland
(34).
23
Health inferences from actual product labels
Q Which of three products is the healthiest?
correct answers

• Highest correct answers
• better nutritional knowledge
• interest in healthy eating
• younger people
• Not related to
• gender
• social grade

24
Health inference - choosing the healthier option
by comparison of 2 labels
Q Which is the healthier product?
correct answers
25
Health inference - choosing the healthier option
by comparison of 3 GDA labels

• All systems in all countries yield similar
  results
• Choice of unhealthier product driven by high
  calories, fat
• High saturated fat less of an issue in other
  countries
• Very few in all countries identified high salt
  product as least healthy (lt22)

Q Which is the healthiest/least healthy product?
UK example

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Food Labelling to Advance Better Education for
Life

• 7th Framework Programme
• Started 1 August 2008 (3 years)

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Overall objectives

• To determine how nutrition information on food
  labels can affect dietary choices, consumer
  habits and food-related health issues by
  developing and applying an interpretation
  framework incorporating both the label and other
  factors/influences.
• To provide the scientific basis on use of
  nutrition information on food labels, including
  scientific principles for assessing the impact of
  different food labelling schemes.

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Penetration of nutrition information on food
labels in EU 27 and Turkey

• 27 EU countries plus Turkey
• 3 retailers per country
• Top 5, consumer cooperative/national, discounter
• Over 50 different retailers
• Physical audit of all products in 5 product
  categories defined by consortium breakfast
  cereals, carbonated soft drinks, yoghurt, ready
  meals, sweet biscuits
• More than 35,000 products
• Auditing period Sep 08 Apr 09

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Results Nutrition information
Nutrition information across 5 categories BOP/FOP
BOP
FOP
of products audited
85 average penetration of BOP nutrition
information of any kind (Hu 84) 48 average
penetration of FOP nutrition information of any
kind (Hu 41)
30
Results Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA)
GDA across 5 categories BOP/FOP
BOP
FOP
of products audited
23 average penetration of BOP GDA labelling
(range 3-48) Hu 16 25 average penetration
of FOP GDA labelling (range 2-63) Hu 22
31
Results Nutrition claims
Nutrition claims across 5 categories BOP/FOP
FOP
BOP
of products audited
20 average penetration of BOP nutrition claims
(range 6-31) Hu 9 25 average penetration of
FOP nutrition claims (range 12-37) Hu 15
32
Results Health claims
Health claims across 5 categories BOP/FOP
FOP
BOP
of products audited
4 average penetration of BOP health claims
(range 1-8) Hu 3 2 average penetration of
FOP health claims (range 0-6) Hu 2
33
Health logos
Health logos across 5 categories
FOP
BOP
of products audited
1 penetration of BOP health logos (range 0-9)
Hu 1 2 penetration of FOP health logos
(range 0-12) Hu 1
34
Definition of health logos

• used on foods that fulfil certain nutrient
  criteria (which vary from logo to logo)
• representing a better-for-you option in a food
  product category