Deciphering Food Packaging: The Misleading Low-Fat Myth Exposed

The "low fat" label on goods can cause more harm than good for producers and consumers. According to a new study conducted by Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU), when manufacturers advertise their products as low in fat, many customers assume they also contain less sugar. However, the sugar level of many low-fat goods is not much different from that of other items. Many of the study's participants felt duped and claimed they would be less likely to purchase these products as a result. The study appeared in the journal Food Quality and Preference (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Truthful yet misleading: Consumer response to 'low fat' food with high sugar content

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Impact of Nutritional Information on Perception and Purchase Decisions

Three trials were carried out by the researchers to determine how the information on yogurt packaging affects perception and purchasing behavior. The online experiments involved 760 persons from the United States. They were asked to rate the calorie, sugar, and fat content on a scale of one to seven. They were also questioned if they would purchase the goods. "We wanted to find out whether information about a reduced fat content changed the overall perception of a product," says the study leader and economist Dr. Steffen Jahn from MLU. Almost all of the respondents accurately predicted the decreased calorie count of the low-fat yogurt, according to the data. At the same time, they assumed that low-fat yogurt contained less sugar than regular yogurt. Some responders were presented with low-fat food with the actual nutritional information displayed on the front in the second and third experiments. Although this group's perception of the sugar content was corrected, their propensity to purchase was reduced, even though the low-fat yogurt contained fewer calories. Another group was shown low-fat goods that did not bear the "low-fat" label, and their purchasing intentions did not change.

Role of Food Packaging Information

"Many people want to eat healthily but fail to do so for a variety of reasons. The information on food packaging also plays a role in this, as it can bias consumer perceptions," says Jahn. Some manufacturers take advantage of this effect. In Australia, a cake mix was advertised as being "97% fat-free" while containing 55% sugar. "Our study shows that consumers can feel deceived by a product because, even though 'low fat' claims by manufacturers are technically true, a part of the truth is concealed," concludes Jahn. Manufacturers should rethink this practice if they want to retain their customers in the long run, says the researcher. One possibility is to place the nutritional values directly on the front of the products.

Reference:

1. Truthful yet misleading: Consumer response to 'low fat' food with high sugar content - (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0950329323000940)

Source-Medindia