95bFM Added sugar labels may not change buyer choices, study suggests
1 September, 2022
Interview by Emilia Sullivan, adapted by David Liwei Shi
Professor Cliona Ni Mhurchu from the University of Auckland says food companies and policy makers should be more proactive in promoting healthier purchasing behaviours. Photo: Unsplash.
Labelling food products with added sugar may not make significant differences in consumer habits, new research has found.
Professor Cliona Ni Mhurchu from the University of Auckland was involved in the study of whether warning labels on high-sugar breakfast cereals, yoghurt, and non-alcoholic beverages influenced the purchasing decisions of Australian parents.
“We were a little surprised that none of the labels had a consistent effect on consumer behaviour,” Mhurchu told 95bFM's The Wire.
Currently, Australia and New Zealand share a joint food standards code, where there is no requirement for products to display added sugar content on their packaging.
Foods like breakfast cereals have high sugar contents that are often masked by high protein, fibre, or other healthy nutritional content.
Mhurchu said because of this, consumers are often confused about how much sugar is in the products they buy.
While added sugar labels may not be largely influential on purchasing behaviours, they were found to have an impact on those who regularly check nutritional labels.
Mhuchu said food companies and policy makers should be more proactive in promoting healthier purchasing behaviours and be “more explicit about displaying how much added sugar there is” in their products.
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
