Do color-coded Nutrition Facts Panels nudge the use of nutrition information?

Xuqi Chen, Zhifeng Gao, Lisa House and Yujuan Gao

Food Policy, 2024, vol. 129, issue C

Abstract: Nutrition Facts labels or Nutrition Facts Panel(s) (NFP) are a critical channel for communicating food nutrition information to consumers. A fundamental question is how to help consumers effectively understand and use the label without missing important information. This paper introduces a color-coded NFP and investigates its impacts on information search and consumer behavior, such as attention to information, food choice, and food health perception. Results show that the color-coded NFP attracts more attention than a black-and-white NFP, specifically for nutrients such as fat, sodium, and sugars, which should be limited. Additionally, the color-coded NFP made it easier for consumers to make food purchase decisions and led consumers to make healthier choices for some products (e.g., chips). Finally, the color-coded NFP reduces the time needed and contributes to a more accurate evaluation of the products’ healthiness in the case of chips, reducing the information processing costs and increasing the utilization of information. Our research demonstrates that the color-coded NFP is more attractive, efficient, and effective in delivering nutrition information and contributes to a healthier decision for some products (e.g., chips) than the traditional NFP.

Keywords: Nutrition Facts label; Colored coding; Information seeking and processing; Food choice; Nutrients (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jfpoli:v:129:y:2024:i:c:s0306919224001416

DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2024.102730

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