How to inform about sodium reduction on food labels?

Abstract

AbstractExcessive sodium intake is a worldwide problem. Little attention has been paid to consumer perceptions and thoughts on how to report sodium reduction in food packaging. We aimed to investigate the opinion of consumers on the best ways to inform about sodium reduction on food labels. We held focus group sessions and performed a modified choice based conjoint analysis. Participants prefer packaging that has the front of pack nutrition label traffic light labeling and use of sentences informing the percentage of sodium content reduction. The blue color and the phrase that informs the percentage of sodium content reduction increase the probability of the consumer choosing a cracker with reduced sodium. These results allow the elaboration of labels for food with low sodium content that meet the expectations and desires of consumers, thus contributing to avoiding a low expectation or even rejection of the products just by looking at their packaging.Practical ApplicationsReducing sodium consumption is one of the most cost‐effective measures that countries could take to improve population health outcomes. This has been one of the most widely discussed issues of the 21st century. Several strategies have been developed to reduce the sodium content of foods. However, if consumers do not choose these products to buy these strategies will not have practical results. The results of this study allow us to identify the opinion and perception of consumers on the reduction of sodium in foods and on how to inform this reduction on labels. With the information obtained in this study, industries will be able to develop packaging with characteristics that will allow a greater probability of choosing foods with reduced sodium content.