Abstract
This article describes an experiment to measure the impact of the Australasian “Health Star Rating” front of pack nutritional label system on consumer choice behaviour. This system presents a one-half to five star rating of nutritional quality via the front facings of food product packages. While this system has been recently rolled out across Australasia, no test of its impact on food choice has been conducted. A sample of 1200 consumers was recruited on exit from supermarkets in New Zealand. A 2 × 2 factorial design was used with two levels of cold cereal product nutritional status (high, five star/low, two star) and two levels of the Health Star Rating label (present/absent). The dependent variable was revealed choice behaviour. The results indicated that the presence of the label had a significant depressive effect on consumer preference, but that this impact was not moderated in any way by the nutritional status expressed by the label. The result represents a significant functional failure of the Health Star Rating label in this research environment. The nature of the failure is consistent with the consumers processing the label in much the same way as the nominal brand cues that dominate the retail food packaging.
Highlights
Front of pack (FOP) nutritional labels have attracted considerable attention in the marketing and nutrition research literature over the last two decades [1,2]
The results indicated that the presence of the label had a significant depressive effect on consumer preference, but that this impact was not moderated in any way by the nutritional status expressed by the label
The purpose of an FOP nutritional label is to offer guidance to consumers on the nutrition status of the food product to which it is attached. It has been a requirement of most developed countries that food products carry specific information as to their ingredients, source and nutritional content on a dedicated nutrition information panel (NIP)
Summary
Front of pack (FOP) nutritional labels have attracted considerable attention in the marketing and nutrition research literature over the last two decades [1,2]. The purpose of an FOP nutritional label is to offer guidance to consumers on the nutrition status of the food product to which it is attached. It has been a requirement of most developed countries that food products carry specific information as to their ingredients, source and nutritional content on a dedicated nutrition information panel (NIP). This information is usually complex, cryptic and placed on areas other than the front/prime facing, where it is unavailable for use in the fast visual evaluations that characterize the large majority of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and food purchases [3]. In addition there are an increasing number of “proprietary” FOP labelling systems that are the private property of individual manufacturers and retailers, which further increases communication “noise” and the potential for consumer confusion [5]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
