Consumer inferences from different versions of a beta-glucans health claim

Stancu, Violeta; Grunert, Klaus G.; Lähteenmäki, Liisa

doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2017.03.001

Cited by 26 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Second, consumers’ needs and wants in relation to foods with health claims and symbols have been studied, explaining how consumers perceive and use health claims and symbols based on their perceptions, processing motivation and ability [ 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. Third, a methodological toolbox has been developed, offering a set of tested methods and strategies for answering future research questions [ 11 , 15 , 16 , 17 ]. Fourth, effects of health claims and symbols on consumer understanding, purchase and consumption have been investigated [ 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Setting Policy Priorities for Front-of-Pack Health Claims and Symbols in the European Union: Expert Consensus Built by Using a Delphi Method

et al. 2019

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Despite the fact that front-of-pack nutrition labels such as health claims and symbols have received growing attention in consumer behavior research, comprehensive conclusions could not yet be drawn to develop concrete policy actions, owing to the complexity of the subject and a constantly changing market environment. In this study, evidence-based policy recommendations and communication guidelines have been derived from the findings of the EU FP7 project CLYMBOL (“Role of health-related CLaims and sYMBOLs in consumer behavior”, Grant Agreement 311963), and have been evaluated and prioritized by European stakeholders using a three-round Delphi method. A moderate level of consensus was achieved and results suggest that policy priority should focus on ways to improve consumer motivation and interest in healthy eating. Consumers’ interest in healthy eating could be increased by adopting appropriate communication strategies such as using innovative ways to communicate the importance of healthy eating, which may aim to change the possible negative association between healthiness and tastiness. The highest-rated finding was related to consumers’ favorable attitude towards health claims with shorter and less complex messages and health symbols with a visible endorsement. Meanwhile, there was a clear consensus that health claims need to be scientifically substantiated and credible but phrased without using overly complex scientific wordings, in order to be meaningful for consumers. Furthermore, stakeholders from academia and industry believe that consumer awareness about existing health claims should be increased. The identified policy recommendations and communication guidelines stem from recent empirical evidence and provide useful insights that guide future policy development aligning consumer protection issues as well as public health and food marketing communication interests.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Setting Policy Priorities for Front-of-Pack Health Claims and Symbols in the European Union: Expert Consensus Built by Using a Delphi Method

et al. 2019

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“…This issue is also recognized by the EC Regulation on NHCs, which prescribes that claims should be used only if the average consumer can be expected to understand the beneficial effect. However, the level of consumer ability to understand claims may depend on several factors such as the use of scientific terms and the length of the claim [54]. Thus, in accordance with Hung et al [9], it is important to increase consumer awareness and understanding of the actual meaning of NHCs available on the market, in order to protect the public from being misled while evaluating the healthiness of food.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Consumers Care about Nutrition and Health Claims? Some Evidence from Italy

Annunziata

Mariani

2019

Nutrients

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This study investigates Italian consumer knowledge and use of nutrition and health claims (NHCs). Six specific claims are examined on the basis of a web survey carried out on a sample of 504 consumers. Our results show that there is little attention to NHCs and their use is not widespread; objective knowledge of the selected claims is fairly scant, generating misinterpretation and confusion about their real meaning. K-means cluster analysis allowed us to identify three segments of consumers, characterized by different levels in attention and use frequency of NHCs, with a specific profile in terms of motivation and nutritional knowledge. Our results suggest the advisability of policy interventions and communication efforts which target the three segments with a view to achieving greater attention to NHCs. In conclusion, to boost knowledge concerning the actual meaning of the claims and their relation with a healthy diet, especially to reach non-users, information should be provided both simply and clearly, avoiding the use of complex scientific terminology.

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“…Therefore, their preformed associative networks are unlikely to be formed or corrected by increasing the level or scientific basis of the information placed on the food packaging in the form of a complex claim statement. Moreover, recent research has shown that adding information to the claim does not necessarily lead to improvements in adequate understanding [36].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding How Consumers Categorise Health Related Claims on Foods: A Consumer-Derived Typology of Health-Related Claims

et al. 2019

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The Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation (NHCR) EC No 1924/2006 aims to provide an appropriate level of consumer protection whilst supporting future innovation and fair competition within the EU food industry. However, consumers’ interpretation of health claims is less well understood. There is a lack of evidence on the extent to which consumers are able to understand claims defined by this regulatory framework. Utilising the Multiple Sort Procedure (MSP), a study was performed (N = 100 participants across five countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom) to facilitate development of a framework of health-related claims encompassing dimensions derived from consumers. Our results provide useful insight into how consumers make sense of these claims and how claims may be optimised to enhance appropriate consumer understanding. They suggest consumers may not consciously differentiate between a nutrition claim and a health claim in the way that regulatory experts do and provide insight into where this might occur. A consumer-derived typology of health-related claims based on three key dimensions is proposed: (1) Familiarity with the nutrient, substance or food stated in the claim; (2) statement type in terms of simplicity/complexity; (3) relevance of the claim, either personally or for a stated population group.

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Consumer inferences from different versions of a beta-glucans health claim

Cited by 26 publications

References 29 publications

Setting Policy Priorities for Front-of-Pack Health Claims and Symbols in the European Union: Expert Consensus Built by Using a Delphi Method

Setting Policy Priorities for Front-of-Pack Health Claims and Symbols in the European Union: Expert Consensus Built by Using a Delphi Method

Do Consumers Care about Nutrition and Health Claims? Some Evidence from Italy

Understanding How Consumers Categorise Health Related Claims on Foods: A Consumer-Derived Typology of Health-Related Claims

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