Labeling Policy Research Articles

Food label literacy among urban dwelling households in Ghana

ObjectiveThe current study examined food label literacy (FLL) among urban-dwelling households. DesignA cross-sectional survey. SettingAccra, the capital city of Ghana. ParticipantsA total of 510 participants. Main outcome measuresFood Label Literacy (FLL) was the dependent variable. FLL was assessed by participant’s ability to correctly interpret information on the use of nutrition facts table, ingredient list and health and nutrition claims when presented with ‘dummy’ food labels. Nutrition-related knowledge of food labels and food label use were the main independent variables. AnalysisData was analysed using descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression. ResultsA third of participants reported using food labels. The adequacy rate for FLL was low. However, individuals who were labels users, had adequate nutrition-related knowledge of label and their use were more likely to have adequate FLL. Conclusions and implicationsData from this study suggests that there is a need for educational interventions and labelling policy reforms such as the introduction of Front-of-package nutrition labelling to encourage, enable, and improve consumer use of food labels in Ghana.

Tobacco packaging and labeling policies in the WHO African Region: Progress 15 years after adoption of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control Article 11 Implementation Guidelines.

Article 11 of the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) requires Parties to adopt and implement effective tobacco packaging and labeling policies to communicate health risks and reduce tobacco consumption. The goal of this study was to assess adoption of these policies in the WHO African Region (AFRO). We reviewed tobacco packaging and labeling policies adopted in AFRO from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids' Tobacco Control Laws database (w w w.tobaccocontrollaws.org). We assessed these policies based on WHO FCTC Article 11 and its Implementation Guidelines examining three sub-policy areas (health warning labels [HWLs], descriptive constituents and emissions information, and misleading packaging and labeling). We developed a scoring system to rank AFRO countries individually and by World Bank's income-level groups and documented the progress during 1985-2023. Forty (of 47) AFRO countries adopted national laws, of which a majority adopted large rotating pictorial HWLs and banned misleading descriptors; only Cote d'Ivoire and Mauritius adopted standardized packaging. The higher a country is in the World Bank's income-level group, the stronger their packaging and labeling policies are. This observation was not present in the sub-policy area of HWLs. Prior to approving the WHO FCTC Article 11 Implementation Guidelines, only 23 countries adopted text-only HWLs whereas 26 countries adopted pictorial HWLs after the approval. Several AFRO countries have adopted tobacco packaging and labeling policies that align with the WHO FCTC Article 11 Implementation Guidelines. More efforts could be directed toward the low-income group and disseminating standardized packaging throughout AFRO. In the WHO African Region (AFRO), the number of tobacco users is increasing, highlighting the need for tobacco packaging and labeling policies aligned with WHO FCTC Article 11 and its Implementation Guidelines as these are proven tobacco control strategies. This study provides a country-level and income-level group ranking of tobacco packaging and labeling policies and documents the evolution of health warning labels adopted in AFRO. It also identifies regional and income-level group successes and gaps in tobacco product packaging and labeling policies and provides recommendations to further align with WHO FCTC Article 11 and its Implementation Guidelines.

Are Tobacco Companies in Nigeria Complying With Health Warning Label Regulations on Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products?

BACKGROUND: Nigeria has approved 50% coverage of text and images of pictorial health warning labels (PHWLs) on packages of cigarettes and other tobacco products such as cigars, smokeless tobacco, and loose tobacco. While there is knowledge on the extent to which LMICs like Nigeria adopt the WHO Framework Convention of Tobacco Control (FCTC), there is need to examine the compliance with adopted packaging and labeling policies to generate knowledge for strengthening existing policies and efforts at enforcement. We assessed agreement with FCTC regulations as well as compliance with Nigerian requirements which are not adequate and do not effectively capture all FCTC requirements to identify the gaps being explored by these companies in an environment of poor regulation in Lagos, Nigeria. METHODS: This descriptive study was conducted in Lagos State, Nigeria, from October 2022 to January 2023. A multistage random sampling method was utilized. Four local government areas (LGAs) with a combined population of 16 million, accounting for 70% of the population in Lagos, Nigeria were selected while three points‑of‑sale were randomly picked from two selected wards in each LGA. Empty discarded packs of cigarette and other tobacco products were collected from these outlets. The pack dimensions were measured and assessed for PHWLs, health warning manipulations and cessation assistance. Findings were assessed for compliance with the FCTC and national legislation. For each compliance feature, we calculated the frequencies and percentages of the packs that were compliant. RESULTS: 704 packs: 434 packs of 22 cigarette brands and 270 packs of 17 different tobacco products including cigars, snuff and loose tobacco were included in the study. Of 434 cigarette packs assessed, 50.3% were compliant with 9 indicators measured. These ranged from 48.8% to 55.5% for individual brands. For cessation assistance, image variability and image manipulation, compliance was 0% across all cigarette packs. Out of 270 tobacco product packs assessed, 10.6% were compliant with the 9 indicators assessed. Of the 12 multinational parent companies and product distributors assessed, the overall level of compliance among them was 24.9%. Level of compliance was noted to very low for companies involved in marketing other tobacco products, ranging from 0% to 20% but moderate for those marketing cigarettes, ranging from 37% to 55.5%. Companies that had no presence or subsidiaries in Nigeria but only export their products were highly non-compliant. CONCLUSIONS: Tobacco companies had low compliance with PHWL on cigarettes and negligible compliance on other tobacco products like cigars, loose and smokeless tobacco. The government should expand and strictly enforce all regulations applying to health warnings, especially on non-cigarette tobacco products and closely monitor companies that merely export their products to the country.

Research on enterprise production decision‐making considering consumer heterogeneity under carbon labeling system

AbstractThe article focuses on consumers with heterogeneous preferences for product carbon footprints under two carbon labeling systems: carbon reduction labels and carbon footprint labels. Using mathematical models, the study explores the optimal decision‐making behavior of enterprises under the carbon labeling system based on consumer utility theory at the enterprise level. It also investigates consumer surplus, environmental improvement, and social welfare under different production modes of the carbon reduction label and carbon footprint label systems at the societal level. The research findings are as follows: (1) At the level of economic benefits for enterprises, choosing to produce products with carbon reduction labels is more favorable when the investment costs for emission reduction are high, while choosing to produce products with carbon footprint labels is more favorable when the investment costs for emission reduction are low. The optimal prices of products under the two carbon labeling systems show opposite trends compared to the investment costs for emission reduction. (2) At the level of environmental benefits for enterprises, under the carbon reduction labeling system, whether through full production or a mixed production mode, enterprises are only willing to reduce the carbon footprint of products to the standard value. However, under the carbon footprint labeling system, especially in the mixed production mode, enterprises show a stronger willingness to overachieve in emission reduction target. (3) At the level of social benefits, compared to the situation under the carbon reduction labeling system, when the investment costs for emission reduction are low, the carbon footprint labeling system is more favorable in terms of consumer surplus and social welfare. However, this advantage gradually diminishes as the investment costs for emission reduction increase. (4) Excessive investment costs for emission reduction are detrimental to the implementation of both carbon reduction and carbon footprint labeling systems. The research conclusions suggest that companies should develop appropriate production strategies based on actual circumstances. Additionally, it is necessary for both the government and companies to reduce investment costs in emissions reductions by improving the system and optimizing emission reduction methods in order to better implement carbon labeling policies.

Effect of calorie labelling in the out-of-home food sector on adult obesity prevalence, cardiovascular mortality, and social inequalities in England: a modelling study

England implemented a menu calorie labelling policy in large, out-of-home food businesses in 2022. We aimed to model the likely policy impact on population-level obesity and cardiovascular disease mortality, as well as the socioeconomic equity of estimated effects, in the adult population in England. For this modelling analysis, we built a comparative assessment model using two scenarios: the current implementation scenario refers to actual deployment only in large (≥250 employees), out-of-home food businesses, whereas the full implementation scenario refers to deployment in every out-of-home food business. We compared each scenario with a counterfactual: the scenario in which no intervention is implemented (ie, baseline). For both scenarios, we modelled the impact of the policy through assumed changes in energy intake due to either consumer response or product reformulation by retailers. We used data from the Office for National Statistics and the National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2009-19, and modelled the effect over 20 years (ie, 2022-41) to capture the long-term impact of the policy and provided mid-period results after 10 years. We used the Monte Carlo approach (2500 iterations) to estimate the uncertainty of model parameters. For each scenario, the model generated the change in obesity prevalence and the total number of deaths prevented or postponed. The current implementation scenario was estimated to reduce obesity prevalence by 0·31 percentage points (absolute; 95% uncertainty interval [UI] 0·10-0·35), which would prevent or postpone 730 cardiovascular disease deaths (UI 430-1300) of the 830 000 deaths (UI 600 000-1 200 000) expected over 20 years. However, the health benefits would be increased if calorie labelling was implemented in all out-of-home food businesses (2·65 percentage points reduction in obesity prevalence [UI 1·97-3·24] and 9200 cardiovascular disease deaths prevented or postponed [UI 5500-16 000]). Results were similar in the most and the least deprived socioeconomic groups. This study offers the first modelled estimation of the impact of the menu calorie labelling regulation on the adult population in England, although we did not include a cost-effectiveness analysis. Calorie labelling might result in a reduction in obesity prevalence and cardiovascular disease mortality without widening health inequalities. However, our results emphasise the need for the government to be more ambitious by applying this policy to all out-of-home food businesses to maximise impact. European Research Council.

Dampak Kebijakan Labelisasi Program Keluarga Harapan (PKH) Terhadap Penerima Manfaat Bantuan PKH di Kecamatan Tanjungpinang Timur

The Family Hope Program (PKH) is a government program in providing social protection for poor families (KM). As part of poverty alleviation efforts through the provision of conditional assistance. However, the number of Family Hope Program (PKH) Beneficiary Families in East Tanjungpinang District was 2231, only 1976 houses were labeled, and the number of graduates increased. This study aims to determine the Impact of Family Hope Program (PKH) Labeling Policy on PKH Aid Beneficiaries in East Tanjungpinang District. This research method is qualitative descriptive. The data collection techniques used are observation, interviews, and documentation studies. The data is analyzed by qualitative techniques. Based on the results of research on the Impact of Family Hope Program (PKH) Labeling Policy on PKH Aid Beneficiaries in East Tanjungpinang District. The impact seen from the interview results and data findings is very clear with a decrease in the number of 300 PKH Beneficiary Family members resigning independently in Tanjungpinang City. In East Tanjungpinang District, there was a decrease of 176 PKH members. The impact felt by the government is in accordance with the objectives of the PKH labeling policy. The impact not only affects the policy itself but also affects PKH Beneficiary Family members.

Heterogeneous preferences and consumer willingness to pay for vitamin D fortification of eggs

AbstractFood reformulation can contribute to achieve public health objectives by facilitating access to healthy and sustainable food choices to consumers. Vitamin D is an important micronutrient that contributes to calcium absorption and bone health. Low vitamin D levels may lead to having a higher risk of poor bone and muscle for human health. In this manuscript we investigated, for the first time, United Kingdom consumer willingness to pay (WTP), and heterogeneity preferences for vitamin D fortification of eggs. We used a choice experiment (CE) involving several hypothetical egg products (i.e., pack of 10 eggs) that vary across three attributes levels such as production method (i.e., Cage, Barn, Free‐range, and Organic), vitamin (i.e., no information or by reporting on the pack the claim “Vitamin D added”), and price (i.e., £0.80/pack, £1.90/pack, £3.00/pack, and £4.10/pack). Results suggest that, although on average consumers prefer low‐price eggs produced using the free‐range production method and the information about vitamin D fortification does not affect their valuation, there is a significant preference heterogeneity in consumer preferences associated with animal welfare, environment, health, and price attributes. Particularly, there is a significant preference heterogeneity towards the purchasing of eggs produced using the barn production method. Furthermore, we found that consumer preferences for vitamin D fortification of eggs is affected by consumer's age and the price of eggs. These findings provide useful insights into the psychology of consumer acceptance and attitudes that can be used in communicating the nature of the fortified vitamin D eggs to the public. They also have important implications for future labeling policies and marketing strategies of egg industry.

IMPLEMENTATION OF EXPIRATION LABELIZATION OF HOUSEHOLD INDUSTRIAL FOOD PRODUCTS (P-IRT)

Food product labeling is one of the policies to ensure the quality of food products consumed by the public. The labeling policy is regulated in PP no.69 of 1999. One of the labeling policies is the obligation of food producers to include the product expiration date. Almost every year, a lot of findings of food products, especially the results of household industrial food products (P-IRT). This study seeks to formulate why the implementation of the PIRT expiration labeling policy is still not optimal. From the results of the study it was found that several factors influenced the implementation of this policy. The first was PIRT certification, especially at the extension stage and producer location review. The second is the understanding of PIRT producers regarding the expiration labeling. The third is limited human and financial resources. Fourth, consumers' concern that is still lacking is mainly related to attention to the expired labels of food products they consume.Keyword: Implementation, Labeling, Food, Expiration, Consumers

Energy Performance Certificates and the Capitalization of Utility Costs in Rents: The Potential Role of Asymmetric Information and Uncertainty

This paper is the first to investigate the relationship between the energy efficiency of dwellings, measured by the energy performance certificate (EPC), and utility cost inclusion in rental prices. First, we investigate potential drivers behind the decision to include utility costs in rents. We find that labeled dwellings are more likely to include utility costs and that this likelihood is higher among energy-efficient dwellings than among inefficient dwellings. Next, we surprisingly find that utility costs seem to be under-capitalized in energy-inefficient dwellings. These results are confirmed with the counterfactual decomposition approach. Overall, the findings indicate that the EPC labeling policy may be important for both landlord and tenant decision-making and may enhance market efficiency.

Can Labeling Policies Facilitate Sustainable Consumption and Production?: A Case Study of a Government-led Ecolabeling Program in Indonesia

Purpose: This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a top-down approach to facilitate sustainable consumption and production through an evaluation of the Indonesian ecolabeling policy, Ekolabel Indonesia.
 Originality: Academic assessments of eco-labels systematically take place in the developed country context. However, persistent environmental threats are driving developing countries, such as Indonesia, to adopt top-down approaches to ecolabeling strategies. Consequently, the emergence of such government-led interventions signals the need for thorough examination.
 Methodology: This study analyzes the policy through a program theory-driven evaluation. While there are various adaptations of this conceptual analytical model, this study utilizes two complementary frameworks: the Theory of Change (ToC) framework and the Multi-Criteria Policy Evaluation (MCPE) approach using Mickwitz’s (2003) valuation multi-criteria.
 Result: The study has four main findings: firstly, the scope of the ecolabel-related Indonesian National Standards remains limited to make a significant impact on the environment. Secondly, there needs to be a sharp uptake of the Ekolabel logo among a wide variety of products. Thirdly, transparency, in the form of data accessibility, must be improved to ensure that stakeholders are held accountable to the policy’s outputs. Lastly, the Ministry must ensure that smaller businesses are not marginalized from the initiative due to de facto barriers such as high conformity assessment costs by private certification bodies.
 Conclusions and Implication: Ekolabel Indonesia has paved the way for other Sustainable Consumption and Production initiatives in Indonesia. However, the Indonesian government needs to address these fundamental issues that compromise its ability to maximize impact. Significant effort needs to be directed towards increasing participation and providing support for equitable development.

Menu Labeling and Calories Purchased in Restaurants in a US National Fast Food Chain

Menu labeling has been implemented in restaurants in some US jurisdictions as early as 2008, but the extent to which menu labeling is associated with calories purchased is unclear. To estimate the association of menu labeling with calories and nutrients purchased and assess geographic variation in results. A cohort study was conducted with a quasi-experimental design using actual transaction data from Taco Bell restaurants from calendar years 2007 to 2014 US restaurants with menu labeling matched to comparison restaurants using synthetic control methods. Data were analyzed from May to October 2023. Menu labeling policies in 6 US jurisdictions. The primary outcome was calories per transaction. Secondary outcomes included total and saturated fat, carbohydrates, protein, sugar, fiber, and sodium. The final sample included 2329 restaurants, with menu labeling in 474 (31 468 restaurant-month observations). Most restaurants (94.3%) were located in California. Difference-in-differences model results indicated that customers purchased 24.7 (95% CI, 23.6-25.7) fewer calories per transaction from restaurants in the menu labeling group in the 3- to 24-month follow-up period vs the comparison group, including 21.9 (95% CI, 20.9-22.9) fewer calories in the 3- to 12-month follow-up period and 25.0 (95% CI, 24.0-26.1) fewer calories in the 13- to 24-month follow-up period. Changes in the nutrient content of transactions were consistent with calorie estimates. Findings in California were similar to overall estimates in magnitude and direction; yet, among restaurants outside of California, no association was observed in the 3- to 24-month period. The outcome of menu labeling also differed by item category and time of day, with a larger decrease in the number of tacos vs other items purchased and a larger decrease in calories purchased during breakfast vs other times of the day in the 3- to 24-month period. In this quasi-experimental cohort study, fewer calories were purchased in restaurants with calorie labels compared with those with no labels, suggesting that consumers are sensitive to calorie information on menu boards, although associations differed by location.

Restaurants' compliance with calorie labeling policies in food delivery applications.

To encourage consumers to make healthier choices, the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) released the Saudi Arabia Nutrition Labeling Policy, which requires restaurants to present caloric information clearly on their menus. Food delivery applications are also mandated to present caloric information on their platforms. The aim of this study is to explore how restaurants on food delivery applications comply with the calorie labeling policy. Data were extracted from a widely used food delivery application in Saudi Arabia to include a sample of 120 "healthy food" restaurants. The restaurants were checked for compliance on both the application and the website. Descriptive and logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the distribution and association of relevant factors. A substantial proportion (43.3%) of healthy foods on delivery applications (n = 120) do not comply with the SFDA calorie labeling policies. Among these restaurants, 56.5% presented the calorie labeling on their menu item. Of those who provided calorie information on their websites (n = 62), 54.8% provided appropriate calorie labeling based on the SFDA policy. There was an association between compliance and the number of restaurant categories but no associations for website calorie labeling, rating, and appropriateness. This study provides important findings for policymakers that will enable them to reinforce food calorie policies on food delivery platforms, restaurant websites, social media, and marketing campaigns. Not all restaurants comply with the SFDA calorie labeling policies. Suggestions to present the calorie-related words in Arabic and offer more information to help the consumer make the appropriate food selection decision. Further studies are needed to explore the reasons for and barriers to posting nutritional information on menu items.

Commentary: Editorial: Strengthening food labeling policies in Brazil.

Commentary: Editorial: Strengthening food labeling policies in Brazil.

How consumer and provider responses to nutritional labelling interact: An online shopping experiment with implications for policy

Food labelling policies are usually conceptualised as a way to inform consumers about nutritional content of food. Although often unstated, a secondary aim is to encourage industry to reformulate recipes or introduce healthier alternatives. Parallel bodies of research examine how consumers and industry respond to food labelling policies. In this study we explored the interaction between provider and consumer responses by recording purchases under different assumptions about the impact of a label on product ranges. We simulated different online food markets and tested the effects of a food label, Nutri-Score, on incentivised consumer decisions. Consumers who were exposed to Nutri-Scores applied to snack products made healthier purchases, on average, than consumers who were not. Consumers who shopped in a market adapted to provide more healthy options made healthier purchases than those who shopped in the current market. These effects were additive: consumers who were exposed to Nutri-Scores on products when shopping in the adapted market made the healthiest choices. In a subsequent choice task, a market that simulated reformulation had a stronger effect on choices than one that merely added healthier options. The findings hence offer insight into the benefits of labelling and may be useful for informing both policy and the dialogue between policymakers and industry.

Analyzing behavioral factors of willingness to pay for sustainability

AbstractConsumption of sustainably produced food enables consumers to contribute to greenhouse gas emission reduction. Using choice experiment data, this study analyzes the effect of socio‐demographics and behavioral factors on consumers' willingness to pay (WTP) for sustainably produced beefsteak. Results show increased WTP for traceable beefsteak raised carbon‐friendly and humanely. Behavioral factors, such as, lifestyle is affecting this WTP more than socio‐demographics and psychographic characteristics. Findings highlight the importance of labeling standards and policies in promoting green consumer behavior targeting lifestyle characteristics.

Under the ecological label policy: Supply chain Heterogeneous product innovation strategies for green marketing

Under the trend of low-carbon development in global scale, manufacturing enterprises that seek low-carbon transition are looking for innovations in green supply chain system. To explore how the green products innovation type, retailers green marketing and government intervention policy collaboratively impact environmental performance, a differentiated game model combining decision optimization and comparative analysis methods has been constructed in this study. The impact of retailer green marketing on supply chain profits and environmental performance as well as the impact of government ecological label policy on retailers green marketing are also extensively evaluated. The results of the model simulations show that green marketing and ecological labeling policies have a synergistic effect in boosting product greenness for development intensive green products (DIGP) innovation, but may not necessarily improve manufacturers' profits and overall social welfare. For marginal cost intensive green products (MIGP) innovation, green marketing alone has no sensible impact on product greenness, but together with implementation of ecological labeling policies, they may motivate retailers to invest in higher marketing efforts, which results in greater economic profits and product greenness, as well as better social welfare. If ecological labeling policy is combined with government subsidy and market price transfer mechanism, for both MIGP and DIGP innovation, corporate green marketing leads to higher economical and environmental value of product chain. However, overall social welfare may diminish, and this negative correlation becomes more significant with further implementation of government eco-label policy.

Is the List of Ingredients a Source of Nutrition and Health Information in Food Labeling? A Scoping Review.

Nutrition labelling is any description intended to inform consumers about the nutritional properties of a food product and has focused primarily on nutrients. However, literature has shown that the nutritional quality of packaged foods is not limited to the amount of nutrients, considering that individuals do not consume only nutrients separately, but rather the entire food matrix. Therefore, to analyze the nutritional quality of a packaged food, it is necessary to read its ingredients. This scoping review aims to discuss (1) the list of ingredients as a source of health and nutrition information in food labelling; (2) opportunities to improve the nutrition labeling policies around the world. The study was carried out through a systematic search on Codex Alimentarius meeting reports. Results show that the list of ingredients is used as a source of nutritional and health information on food labelling; however, this label item is not considered in the regulatory field as a nutrition labelling requirement. It is suggested that nutrition labelling be discussed as a tool for food choices in the context of public health from a broader, consistent, convergent perspective, considering the list of ingredients as an item of nutrition labelling requirement to be included in public policies around the world.

FRONT-END NUTRITION LABELING AND ECO-LABELING MODELS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PROMOTION

Creating food systems that provide healthy food for everyone without exploiting human or planetary resources, is one of the greatest challenges of this century. Front-end nutrition labeling and eco-efficiency systems have been proposed as a means of addressing health disparities and sustainable food and nutrition security. The aim of the study is the exploratory analysis of existing front-end nutrition labeling and eco-efficiency systems in order to make informed decisions about the further development of an effective labeling system. To carry out the study, the method of systematic document review and data triangulation was applied. The review provided information on the impact of color-coded labels and warnings in driving consumer purchasing behavior towards healthier products. Each labeling system had different attributes that should be taken into account when developing front-end nutrition labeling and eco-efficiency policies, depending on local contexts. However, front-end labeling is unlikely to be a panacea for changing consumer behavior but can target small incremental changes at different levels and actors in the food system.

Envisaged methodologies for sustainable food labelling policies might worsen water scarcity

To reduce the current billions of people facing water scarcity, which is a dedicated Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target, different actions and measures are required. This includes food labelling which accounts for water scarcity, to help consumers make informed choices when purchasing food products. The European Commission is considering the proposal of a “Sustainable food labelling framework” in the last quartal of 2023, within its ambitious Farm to Fork strategy. Implementing such a food label in the EU has a potential reach of 447 million consumers. Most prominent label candidate is its own developed PEF (Product Environmental Footprint), a tool already implemented by some retailers in the EU. However, this paper argues that the category water scarcity in the PEF has two major flaws. First, it does not account for water efficiency of a product, which is essential to solve global water stress. Second, the spatial resolution for water stress is much too coarse. The current PEF tool makes comparisons between products useless and even misleading. Its use might worsen global water scarcity, as it provides producers and consumers the wrong incentives. Urgent revision of the category water stress in the PEF is required. This can be done by using the indicators water stress and water efficiency in a complementary way, as well as using the most detailed spatial resolution science can provide.

A multi-country comparison of jurisdictions with and without mandatory nutrition labelling policies in restaurants: analysis of behaviours associated with menu labelling in the 2019 International Food Policy Study.

To examine differences in noticing and use of nutrition information comparing jurisdictions with and without mandatory menu labelling policies and examine differences among sociodemographic groups. Cross-sectional data from the International Food Policy Study (IFPS) online survey. IFPS participants from Australia, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom and USA in 2019. Adults aged 18-99; n 19 393. Participants in jurisdictions with mandatory policies were significantly more likely to notice and use nutrition information, order something different, eat less of their order and change restaurants compared to jurisdictions without policies. For noticed nutrition information, the differences between policy groups were greatest comparing older to younger age groups and comparing high education (difference of 10·7 %, 95 % CI 8·9, 12·6) to low education (difference of 4·1 %, 95 % CI 1·8, 6·3). For used nutrition information, differences were greatest comparing high education (difference of 4·9 %, 95 % CI 3·5, 6·4) to low education (difference of 1·8 %, 95 % CI 0·2, 3·5). Mandatory labelling was associated with an increase in ordering something different among the majority ethnicity group and a decrease among the minority ethnicity group. For changed restaurant visited, differences were greater for medium and high education compared to low education, and differences were greater for higher compared to lower income adequacy. Participants living in jurisdictions with mandatory nutrition information in restaurants were more likely to report noticing and using nutrition information, as well as greater efforts to modify their consumption. However, the magnitudes of these differences were relatively small.