Impact of different front-of-pack nutrition labels on foods according to their nutritional quality: a comparative study in Mexico

Objective. This study aimed to compare consumers’ objec- tive understanding of five FoPLs [Health Star Rating system (HSR), Multiple Traffic Lights (MTL), Nutri-Score, Reference Intakes (RIs), Warning Symbol] in Mexico. Materials and methods. 1 001 Mexican consumers were recruited and asked to rank...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Liliana Guadalupe Hernández-Nava, Manon Egnell, Carlos Alberto Aguilar-Salinas, José Ángel Córdova-Villalobos, Jorge Armando Barriguete-Meléndez, Simon Pettigrew, Serge Hercberg, Chantal Julia, Pilar Galán
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública 2019-10-01
Series:Salud Pública de México
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Online Access:http://www.saludpublica.mx/index.php/spm/article/view/10318
Description
Summary:Objective. This study aimed to compare consumers’ objec- tive understanding of five FoPLs [Health Star Rating system (HSR), Multiple Traffic Lights (MTL), Nutri-Score, Reference Intakes (RIs), Warning Symbol] in Mexico. Materials and methods. 1 001 Mexican consumers were recruited and asked to rank three sets of label-free products according to their nutritional quality, via a survey. Upon completion of this task, participants were randomized to one of five FoPL conditions and were again asked to rank the same sets of products, this time with a FoPL displayed on pack. Change in ability to correctly rank products across the two tasks was assessed by FoPL using ordinal logistic regression. Results. Nutri-Score and MTL performed best, followed Warning Symbol, HSR and RIs. Conclusion. Nutri-Score and MTL appear as efficient schemes to inform consumers on the nutritional quality of foods, in particular in Mexico, where it would be a helpful tool for consumers in purchasing situations.
ISSN:0036-3634