Nutrition Labeling to Prevent Obesity: Reviewing the Evidence from Europe

Current Obesity Reports

Volumn 1, Issue 3, 2012, Pages 134-140

  Storcksdieck genannt Bonsmann, Stefan ^a   Wills, Josephine M ^a  

^a European Food Information Council ^*  (Belgium)

Author keywords

Consumer behavior; Nutrition labeling; Obesity prevention; Public policy

Indexed keywords

CONSUMER HEALTH INFORMATION; DIETARY INTAKE; EATING HABIT; ENERGY BALANCE; EUROPEAN UNION; FOOD PACKAGING; HEALTH FOOD; HEALTH PROGRAM; HEALTH SURVEY; HUMAN; OBESITY; PHYSICAL ACTIVITY; PRIORITY JOURNAL; REVIEW;

EID: 84887519611     PISSN: None     EISSN: 21624968     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1007/s13679-012-0020-0     Document Type: Review

References (49)

1. European Commission. Strategy for Europe on nutrition, overweight and obesity related health issues - Implementation Progress Report 2010. Brussels: European Commission; 2010.
2. World Health Organization (WHO). Global strategy on diet, physical activity and health. Geneva: WHO; 2004.
3. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Promoting sustainable consumption - good practices in OECD countries. Paris: OECD Publishing; 2008.
4. González-Zapata LI, Alvarez-Dardet C, Ortiz-Moncada R, et al. Policy options for obesity in Europe: a comparison of public health specialists with other stakeholders. Public Health Nutr. 2009; 12(7): 896-908.
5. Gracia A, Loureiro ML, Nayga Jr RM. Consumers' valuation of nutritional information: a choice experiment study. Food Qual Pref. 2009; 20: 463-71.
6. EC (2011). Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 October 2011 on the provision of food information to co nsumers, amending Regulations (EC) No 1924/2006 and (EC) No 1925/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council, and repealing Commission Directive 87/250/EEC, Council Directive 90/496/EEC, Commission Directive 1999/10/EC, Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, Commission Directives 2002/67/EC and 2008/5/EC and Commission Regulation (EC) No 608/2004. Official Journal of the European Union L 304, 22. 11. 2011, p. 18-63.
7. EC (1990). Council Directive 90/496/EEC of 24 September 1990 on nutrition labeling for foodstuffs. Official Journal of the European Union L. 1990; 276, 6. 10: p. 40-44.
8. EC (2000). Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 March 2000 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to the labeling, presentation and advertising of foodstuffs. Official Journal of the European Union L 109, 6. 5. 2000, p. 29-42.
9. Storcksdieck genannt Bonsmann S, Fernández Celemín L, Larrañaga A, et al. Penetration of nutrition information on food labels across the EU-27 plus Turkey. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010; 64: 1379-85.
10. McDonald's® Nutrition Information Initiative - Worldwide Rollout Fact Sheet. Available at http://mcdepk. com/olympicresourcecenter/downloads/0207/nutrition_information_facts. pdf. Accessed 2 April 2012.
11. UK Department of Health website, Public Health Responsibility Deal section, Pledges. F1. Out of Home Calorie Labeling. Available at http://responsibilitydeal. dh. gov. uk/2012/02/03/f1-factsheet/. Accessed 12 March 2012.
12. Raats MM, Wills JM. How do consumers respond to portion information on food and drink labels? Initial results of new EUFIC consumer research. Webinar released on 18 February 2011. Available at http://www. eufic.org/webinars/consumerresearch/index.html. Accessed 6 March 2012.
13. Wills JM, Grunert KG. Pan-European consumer research on in-store behaviour, understanding and use of nutrition information on food labels, and nutrition knowledge - Results from the European Study. Webinar released on 5 November 2008. Available at http://www. eufic. org/webinars/eufic/paneuropeanlabelresearch/europe/index. htm. Accessed 6 March 2012.
14. Campos S, Doxey J, Hammond D. Nutrition labels on pre-packaged foods: a systematic review. Public Health Nutr. 2011; 14(8): 1496-506.
15. van Kleef E, van Trijp H, Paeps F, Fernández-Celemín L. Consumer preferences for front-of-pack calories labeling. Public Health Nutr. 2008; 11(2): 203-13.
16. Hieke S, Wilczynski P. Colour Me In - an empirical study on consumer responses to the traffic light signposting system in nutrition labeling. Public Health Nutr. 2012; 15(5): 773-782.
17. Roodenburg AJC, Schlatmann A, Dötsch-Klerk M, et al. Potential Effects of Nutrient Profiles on Nutrient Intakes in the Netherlands, Greece, Spain, USA, Israel, China and South-Africa. PLoS One. 2011; 6(2): e14721.
18. Balcombe K, Fraser I, Salvatore Di F. Traffic lights and food choice: a choice experiment examining the relationship between nutritional food labels and price. Food Policy. 2010; 35(3): 211-20.
19. Temme EH, van der Voet H, Roodenburg AJ, et al. Impact of foods with health logo on saturated fat, sodium and sugar intake of young Dutch adults. Public Health Nutr. 2010; 14(4): 635-44.
20. Roodenburg AJC, Temme EHM, Davies OH, Seidell JC. Potential impact of the Choices Programme on nutrient intakes in the Dutch population. Nutr Bull. 2009; 34(3): 318-23.
21. Sassi F, Cecchini M, Lauer J, Chisholm D. Improving Lifestyles, Tackling Obesity: The Health and Economic Impact of Prevention Strategies. OECD Health Working Papers, No. 48, Paris: OECD Publishing; 2009.
22. Food Safety Authority of Ireland. A research study into consumers' attitudes to food labeling. Dublin: Food Safety Authority of Ireland; 2009.
23. Malam S, Clegg S, Kirwan S, McGinigal S. Comprehension and use of UK nutrition signpost labeling schemes. London: Food Standards Agency; 2009.
24. Grunert KG, Wills JM. A review of European research on consumer response to nutrition information on food labels. J Public Health. 2007; 15(5): 385-99.
25. Grunert KG, Fernández-Celemín L, Wills JM, Storcksdieck genannt Bonsmann S, Nureeva L. Use and understanding of nutrition information on food labels in six European countries. J Public Health. 2010; 18(3): 261-77. This study provides the first comprehensive assessment of European consumers' responses to nutrition labels. Subjective data are supplemented by solid objective evidence and provide valuable insights from different food cultures.
26. Borgmeier I, Westenhoefer J. Impact of different food label formats on healthiness evaluation and food choice of consumers: a randomized-controlled study. BMC Public Health. 2009; 9: 184.
27. Feunekes GIJ, Gortemaker IA, Willems AA, et al. Front-of-pack nutrition labeling: testing effectiveness of different nutrition labeling formats front-of-pack in four European countries. Appetite. 2008; 50: 57-70.
28. van Kleef E, Dagevos H. The growing role of front-of-pack nutrition profile labeling: A consumer perspective on key issues and controversies. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2012, In press.
29. Storcksdieck genannt Bonsmann S, Fernández Celemín L, Grunert KG, on behalf of the FLABEL consortium. Food Labeling to Advance Better Education for Life (FLABEL). Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010; 64: S14-9.
30. Fernandez Celemin L and Grunert KG. Food Labeling to Advance Better Education for Life - Major results and conclusions. Webinar released on 31 January 2012. Available at: http://flabel. org/en/News/FLABEL-final-webinar. Accessed 7 March 2012.
31. Sacks G, Rayner M, Swinburn B. Impact of front-of-pack 'traffic-light' nutrition labeling on consumer food purchases in the UK. Health Promot Int. 2009; 24(4): 344-52. Although this study is very small in scale, it provides the first scientific assessment of changes in food sales in relation to the introduction of a front-of-pack nutrition labeling scheme.
32. Vyth EL, Steenhuis IH, Vlot JA, et al. Actual use of a front-of-pack nutrition logo in the supermarket: consumers' motives in food choice. Public Health Nutr. 2010; 13(11): 1882-9.
33. Möser A, Hoefkens C, van Camp J, Verbeke W. Simplified nutrient labeling: consumers' perceptions in Germany and Belgium. J Verbrauch Lebensm. 2010; 5: 169-80.
34. Lachat C, Nago E, Verstraeten R, et al. Eating out of home and its association with dietary intake: a systematic review of the evidence. Obes Rev. 2012; 13: 329-46. A rigorous overview of the latest evidence base and as such a useful starting point for discussions about the need for nutrition labeling in the context of out-of-home eating.
35. Nago ES, Lachat C, Dossa RA, Kolsteren P. Association of out-of-home eating with anthropometric changes: a systematic review of prospective studies. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2011. doi: 10. 1080/10408398. 2011. 627095.
36. Hoefkens C, Lachat C, Kolsteren P, et al. Posting point-of-purchase nutrition information in university canteens does not influence meal choice and nutrient intake. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011; 94(2): 562-70.
37. Vermeer WM, Steenhuis IHM, Leeuwis FH, et al. View the label before you view the movie: A field experiment into the impact of Portion size and Guideline Daily Amounts labeling on soft drinks in cinemas. BMC Public Health. 2011; 11: 438.
38. Vyth EL, Steenhuis IHM, Heymans MW, et al. Influence of placement of a nutrition logo on cafeteria menu items on lunchtime food Choices at Dutch work sites. J Am Diet Assoc. 2011; 111(1): 131-6.
39. Clegg S, Jordan E, Slade Z. An evaluation of the provisions of calorie information by catering outlets. London: Food Standards Agency; 2011.
40. Bialkova S, van Trijp H. What determines consumer attention to nutrition labels? Food Qual Pref. 2010; 21(8): 1042-51. This study uses sophisticated eye-tracking methodology to objectively measure consumers' attention to food labels.
41. EUFIC (2011). Consumer response to portion information on food and drink packaging - A pan-European study. EUFIC Forum n° 5, published February 2011.
42. Draper AK, Adamson AJ, Clegg S, et al. Front-of-pack nutrition labeling: are multiple formats a problem for consumers? Eur J Public Health. 2011; 1-5. doi: 10. 1093/eurpub/ckr144.
43. van Herpen E, Seiss E, van Trijp HCM. The role of familiarity in front-of-pack label evaluation and use: A comparison between the United Kingdom and The Netherlands. Food Qual Pref. 2012; 6(1): 22-34.
44. van Herpen E, van Trijp H. Front-of-pack nutrition labels. Their effect on attention and choices when consumers have varying goals and time constraints. Appetite. 2011; 57(1): 148-60. This study highlights the relevance of consumer goals when shopping for food, and can thus inform future research into shaping consumers' mindset for healthier food choices.
45. Visschers VH, Hess R, Siegrist M. Health motivation and product design determine consumers' visual attention to nutrition information on food products. Public Health Nutr. 2010; 13(7): 1099-106.
46. Ashton R. Obesity: does a one-size intervention fit all? Nat Clin Pract Endocrinol Metab. 2008; 4(6): 301.
47. Vyth EL, Steenhuis IH, Roodenburg AJ, et al. Front-of-pack nutrition label stimulates healthier product development: a quantitative analysis. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2010; 7: 65.
48. Barreiro-Hurlé J, Gracia A, de-Magistris T. Does nutrition information on food products lead to healthier food choices? Food Policy. 2010; 35(3): 221-9.
49. Allison DB. Evidence, discourse and values in obesity-oriented policy: menu labeling as a conversation starter. Int J Obes. 2011; 35: 464-71. This commentary provides important considerations for researchers and policy makers for producing and using a solid scientific evidence base in the area of nutrition labeling for public health.