Abstract
Background
The Food and Drug Administration is considering changes to the Nutrition Facts label
to help consumers make more healthful choices.
Objective
To examine the effects of modifications to the Nutrition Facts label on foods that
can be listed as having 1 or 2 servings per container, but are reasonably consumed
at a single eating occasion.
Design
Participants were randomly assigned to study conditions that varied on label format,
product, and nutrition profile. Data were collected via an online consumer panel.
Participants/setting
Adults aged 18 years and older were recruited from Synovate's online household panel.
Data were collected during August 2011. A total of 32,897 invitations were sent for
a final sample of 9,493 interviews.
Intervention
Participants were randomly assigned to one of 10 label formats classified into three
groups: listing 2 servings per container with a single column, listing 2 servings
per container with a dual column, and listing a single serving per container. Within
these groups there were versions that enlarged the font size for “calories,” removed
“calories from fat,” and changed the wording for serving size declaration.
Main outcome measures
The single product task measured product healthfulness, the amount of calories and
various nutrients per serving and per container, and label perceptions. The product
comparison task measured ability to identify the healthier product and the product
with fewer calories per container and per serving.
Statistical analyses performed
Analysis of covariance models with Tukey-Kramer tests were used. Covariates included
general label use, age, sex, level of education, and race/ethnicity.
Results
Single-serving and dual-column formats performed better and scored higher on most
outcome measures.
Conclusions
For products that contain 2 servings but are customarily consumed at a single eating
occasion, using a single-serving or dual-column labeling approach may help consumers
make healthier food choices.
Keywords
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Biography
A. M. Lando is a consumer science specialist, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration, College Park, MD.
Biography
S. C. Lo is a consumer science specialist, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration, College Park, MD.
Article info
Publication history
Published online: January 23, 2013
Accepted:
October 11,
2012
Footnotes
Supplementary materials: Podcast available at www.andjrnl.org/content/podcast
STATEMENT OF POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
FUNDING/SUPPORT All funding for this study was provided by the US Food and Drug Administration.
Identification
Copyright
Published by Elsevier Inc.
