Traffic light in the cafeteria
Color-coded food contributes to an informed choice of food
ABC Magazine based on the materials of Massachusetts General Hospital:
"Traffic-light" labeling increases customer’s attention to nutritional quality of their food choices
A group of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston confirmed that the use of color markings – as in traffic lights – to indicate healthy and more harmful foods increases sales of healthy products and reduces sales of less valuable ones.
Earlier studies have already shown that people who pay attention to the composition of food tend to choose healthier and healthier food. Nevertheless, exclusively textual labeling and description of the composition of the product require the consumer to pay increased attention to the issue and focus. When using simplified color designations such as traffic light colors, people are better guided in the usefulness of food. It is assumed that the introduction of color labeling can contribute to improving the diet of people who are not too concerned about the composition of the food consumed. This study, as the authors note, is the first in which the effectiveness of labeling is quantified by the choice of products and the relationship of this effect with consumer alertness regarding the usefulness of food is revealed.
To confirm and evaluate the effect of simplified color labeling, the authors tested it in the hospital cafeteria and interviewed some consumers about their food selection habits before and after the introduction of labeling. The designation system itself was developed by two nutrition experts based on the recommendations of the US Department of Agriculture from 2005 (2005 United States Department of Agriculture's Dietary Guidelines) and has already been used in earlier studies. When evaluating an individual dish, its composition was taken into account (whether it is based on fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat meat or dairy products), the presence of saturated fats, caloric content and contribution to the recommended diet composition of 2,000 calories per day.
All the cash registers in the dining room were set up in advance to take into account which products were purchased – "red", "yellow" or "green". For two weeks before the labeling of products and two weeks after, information was collected from the cash registers, and customers were interviewed immediately after the purchase about what attention they usually pay to the composition of food. The experimental part began with the fact that all the food in the dining room was marked in red, yellow or green directly on the packaging, on the shelves or in the menu, and this innovation was presented as a program to develop a more conscious choice of food among the visitors of the dining room. The description of the meaning of the marking was placed on the wall of the dining room, on two large columns in its center and in booklets. During both weeks of the experiment, a nutritionist was present in the dining room, who answered questions about the program and food classification in detail.
The experiment confirmed that simplified labeling of products by traffic light colors, depending on their compliance with accepted standards of healthy food, increases consumer alertness regarding its composition at the time of purchase. After the introduction of color codes, more visitors to the dining room studied the composition of the purchased products, products with a "green" label were purchased more often. The number of people who, according to the survey, tried to eat healthy food always or almost always, did not differ before and after the introduction of the designations. However, before the introduction of designations, they acquired more "harmful" food: red or yellow. The data obtained are consistent with the results of previous studies, according to which many people do not have the skill to choose food or do not think about its composition at the time of purchase.
The authors conclude that a simplified food labeling scheme can help more people think about a more healthy food choice at the time of its purchase and increase the likelihood of an informed choice in favor of a healthy diet.
Article by Sonnenberg et al. A traffic light food labeling intervention increases consumer awareness of health and healthy choices at the point-of-purchase is published in the journal Preventive Medicine.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru31.10.2013