Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile
Growth in the consumer health and wellness industry has led to an increase of packaged foods marketed as health food (HF) products. In consequence, a ‘health halo’ around packaged HF has arisen that influences consumers at point-of-purchase. This study compared product claims (nutrient content claim...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-05-01
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| Series: | Nutrients |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/5/1513 |
| _version_ | 1797567251664076800 |
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| author | Maddison Breen Hollie James Anna Rangan Luke Gemming |
| author_facet | Maddison Breen Hollie James Anna Rangan Luke Gemming |
| author_sort | Maddison Breen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Growth in the consumer health and wellness industry has led to an increase of packaged foods marketed as health food (HF) products. In consequence, a ‘health halo’ around packaged HF has arisen that influences consumers at point-of-purchase. This study compared product claims (nutrient content claims (NCC), health claims and marketing ‘buzzwords’) displayed on packaged HF snack products sold in HF stores and HF aisles in supermarkets to equivalent products sold in regular aisles (RA) of supermarkets. Product Health Star Rating (HSR), nutrient profile and price were also compared. Data were collected for 2361 products from three supermarket chains, two HF chains and one independent HF store in Sydney, Australia. Mann-Whitney U tests compared the product claims, HSR, nutrient composition and unit ($) price. HF snacks displayed significantly more product claims per product compared to RA foods (HSR ≤ 2.5), median (IQR) 5.0(4.0) versus 1.0(2) and (HSR > 2.5) 4.0(4.0) versus 3.0(4), respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.001). A significantly different HSR was evident between HF and RA snack products, median 2.5(0) versus 2.0(1.5), respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.001). HF snacks cost significantly more than RA snack foods, irrespective of product HSR (<i>p</i> < 0.001). These findings support the recommendation for revised labelling regulations and increased education regarding consumers food label interpretation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:39:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ca994167d9424e12ac843fb5882e7d21 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T19:39:01Z |
| publishDate | 2020-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nutrients |
| spelling | doaj.art-ca994167d9424e12ac843fb5882e7d212023-11-20T01:25:09ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432020-05-01125151310.3390/nu12051513Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient ProfileMaddison Breen0Hollie James1Anna Rangan2Luke Gemming3Nutrition & Dietetics Department, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaNutrition & Dietetics Department, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaNutrition & Dietetics Department, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaNutrition & Dietetics Department, Charles Perkins Centre, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaGrowth in the consumer health and wellness industry has led to an increase of packaged foods marketed as health food (HF) products. In consequence, a ‘health halo’ around packaged HF has arisen that influences consumers at point-of-purchase. This study compared product claims (nutrient content claims (NCC), health claims and marketing ‘buzzwords’) displayed on packaged HF snack products sold in HF stores and HF aisles in supermarkets to equivalent products sold in regular aisles (RA) of supermarkets. Product Health Star Rating (HSR), nutrient profile and price were also compared. Data were collected for 2361 products from three supermarket chains, two HF chains and one independent HF store in Sydney, Australia. Mann-Whitney U tests compared the product claims, HSR, nutrient composition and unit ($) price. HF snacks displayed significantly more product claims per product compared to RA foods (HSR ≤ 2.5), median (IQR) 5.0(4.0) versus 1.0(2) and (HSR > 2.5) 4.0(4.0) versus 3.0(4), respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.001). A significantly different HSR was evident between HF and RA snack products, median 2.5(0) versus 2.0(1.5), respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.001). HF snacks cost significantly more than RA snack foods, irrespective of product HSR (<i>p</i> < 0.001). These findings support the recommendation for revised labelling regulations and increased education regarding consumers food label interpretation.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/5/1513health foodnutrient content claimshealth claimsfood labellingnutrient profilehealth star rating |
| spellingShingle | Maddison Breen Hollie James Anna Rangan Luke Gemming Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile Nutrients health food nutrient content claims health claims food labelling nutrient profile health star rating |
| title | Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile |
| title_full | Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile |
| title_fullStr | Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile |
| title_full_unstemmed | Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile |
| title_short | Prevalence of Product Claims and Marketing Buzzwords Found on Health Food Snack Products Does Not Relate to Nutrient Profile |
| title_sort | prevalence of product claims and marketing buzzwords found on health food snack products does not relate to nutrient profile |
| topic | health food nutrient content claims health claims food labelling nutrient profile health star rating |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/5/1513 |
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