Food health branding: The role of marketing mix elements and public discourse in conveying a healthy brand image

Abstract

The soaring rates of dietary-related diseases have increased the need for interventions in consumers' healthy eating behaviour. The two main avenues followed so far have focused on either making consumers change their food choices or improving the nutrition content of food products. Both avenues are said to have limitations since consumers often base their choices on heuristics that simplify their choices, such as brands. Therefore, branding is considered an important tool in communicating the value of health and contributing towards healthier food choices. However, branding a food product based on the value of health is not an easy practice as strategies employed may often fail to convey the value of health. Based on a case study approach drawn from the Danish food industry, this paper has two objectives: (1) to provide a line of insight on how marketing mix elements are used to convey a healthy brand image; and (2) to explore how brands that are positioned as healthy are dealt with in the public discourse.