Nutritional Advertising: Marketing or Cheating? Download PDF

Journal Name : SunText Review of Arts & Social Sciences

DOI : 10.51737/2766-4600.2023.063

Article Type : Research Article

Authors : Duarte A

Keywords : Advertising; Communication; Nutrition; Healthy; Labels

Abstract

Scientific data revealing a link between diseases and a poor diet have made consumers more attentive to what they consume and wanting to adopt new lifestyles. Although nutritional knowledge is scarce, brands need to reinvent themselves and be attentive to these changes so that they can keep up with their competition. Therefore, the aim of this study is to understand the perspective from the two sides: brands and consumers. On the one hand, how do brands advertise (supposedly) healthy products and, on the other, how do consumers perceive these same products. For a more targeted study, we chose to study the biscuit sector with an observational study in a supermarket, analyzed through a questionnaire survey. Overall, this study concludes that consumers are somewhat concerned with their eating habits. However, this preoccupation differs from the true nutritional reality from each product. We then conclude that the public’s lack of knowledge is the key factor that allow companies to sell these products in a healthy way.


Introduction

The growing concern for well-being and health has been evident in recent years and the search for a healthy lifestyle has become an obsession for many people [1,2]. As a result, we have seen a change in the communication made by the brands themselves and the appearance of many others aimed at satisfying these recent public desires. Any supermarket is full of "light", "diet", "sugar-free", "organic", "gluten-free" products and, in our subconscious, all these characteristics equate to healthy products that will help us lose weight [3]. But do we really know what we're buying and consuming? Are all these products that advertise themselves as "healthy" really healthy?

The need to clarify and demystify all the "secrets" behind product labels justifies this research, which aims to answer the following question: How does the information provided on the labels of products reported as healthy influence consumers’ perceptions?


Theoretical framework

It is not certain where advertising originated or when it began, but the truth is that the history of advertising has evolved step by step with human development and technical progress [4]. Although different authors suggest different dates and moments for its emergence there is a consensus that, although Gutenberg's invention of the movable typo machine in the 15th century gave a significant boost to communication, it was with the Industrial Revolution that productive, commercial, and communicative activities really became a mass phenomenon. Despite this natural evolution, it took until the end of the 20th century for a new and significant change to revolutionize this industry once again: the appearance of the internet. With it, the world became virtually networked, consumers had instant and easy access to information and became increasingly suspicious of advertising [5,6].


Ethics in advertising

Ethics, according to Tai, is a set of moral principles whose aim is to improve the well- being of society [7]. As an extremely persuasive activity with clear commercial motivations, advertising is often accused of ethical violations which, for the most part, are centered on an apparent lack of social responsibility and regularly target potentially more vulnerable groups, such as children, minorities, or the disadvantaged [8]. With consumers' growing concern and demand for truthful, serious, responsible, and sustainable communication organizations are changing their approach and communication to demonstrate coherence between their actions and the image they wish to project [9,10].

The packaging as a communication tool

As a result of consumer demands, immediate access to information, ever-increasing competition, and the internationalization of markets, as well as legislation in different countries, packaging is constantly evolving [11]. "Packaging is a complete and complex object that combines two major functions: to contain the product and to advertise it" and is an important communication tool as it plays a fundamental role in decision-making [12-14]. In other words, packaging can both be used as a marketing tool and can help consumers make informed choices [15]. In the case of eating products, and to ensure that consumers receive reliable nutritional information about the products they buy, the organizations responsible for health issues have created regulations so that the message on the packaging can be more easily controlled [16]. Food labels must therefore inform consumers about the composition of products to avoid misunderstandings and protect them from misuse and possible risks [17]. In recent years, nutritional claims have been added to the traditional nutritional information in the form of a table on the back of the pack and, in fact, this is what consumers base their purchasing decision on [16-18]. Nutritional information is not understood by most people as it is difficult to understand for those who are not in the field of nutrition but the nutritional claims on the front of packs are better perceived by consumers, something that can be understood as subjective perception or understanding [19-21]. It should also be noted that visual elements are usually the most eye- catching and their processing in the consumer's mind is unconscious, while verbal elements require greater cognitive effort to be attractive and trigger attention [22]. For better and easier nutritional reading, front-of-pack labelling systems have been created to allow quick decision-making through a simple format that is accessible to view and spontaneous to interpret [23]. It is important to note that these labels do not provide a complete assessment of the product's level of health, but rather a summary and not very detailed analysis of the product [24]. One such case is Nutri-Score (Figure 1). Created in France in 2017 by Santé publique France, this system, which has since been adopted by many other countries, consists of assessing the nutritional profile of a food product using an algorithm based on nutritional criteria that classifies the product between dark green, being the healthiest, (letter A) and red, being the least healthy, (letter E) [25]. In the Nutritional Traffic Light (Figure 2), some of the nutritional elements (fat, saturated fat, sugar, and salt/sodium) are represented by a symbol that indicates whether the value is low (in green), medium (in orange) or high (in red) [24]. Another system is the Health Star Rating (Figure 3), which classifies the general nutritional profile of foods and assigns them ratings ranging from half a star to 5 stars, making it quick and easy to compare similar products - the more stars it has, the healthier the product. Nutritional information on packaging has evolved a lot over time. In the beginning, this data was only used to inform consumers about the nature and composition of products, but now a detailed description is mandatory so that trade is fair and free from fraud, and so that food choices are made in an informed manner, with full factual knowledge [26]. 


Figure 1: Nutri-Score.

Source: Santé publique France, 2021.



Figure 2: Nutritional Traffic Light (example) Source: Costa, 2021.


Figure 3: Health Star Rating System.

Source: healthdirect, 2021.





Figure 4: Label Decoder.

Source: Programa Nacional Promoção Alimentação Saudável, 2015.


Examples of this are regulations 178/2002, 1924/2006 and 1169/2011 of the European Parliament, or the General Standards for the Labelling of Prepackaged Foods of the Codex Alimentarius - International Food Standards, to name just a few. As the decision to choose a product is becoming increasingly difficult, given the variety on the market and the short time available to make that choice the National Program for the Promotion of Healthy Eating (NPPHE) has created a Label Decoder in Portugal (Figure 4), in conjunction with the Directorate General for Health, based on the recommendations of the UK Department of Health/Ministry of Health. It is therefore suggested that consumers take these cards with them when they go shopping, opting mainly for foods/drinks whose nutrients fall into the green category, moderating those in the yellow category and avoiding those in the red category [27].


Methodology

Instruments used and sample

A mixed methodology was used for this study, combining qualitative and quantitative methods. The qualitative method was based on points of sale visits, recording, and analyzing the data. As for the quantitative method, the instrument used was a questionnaire survey. For the study in question, we chose to use a non-probabilistic random sample, since everyone in the sample has a known, non-zero chance of being selected.

Methodological design

Biscuits, which can be eaten anywhere, at any time of day and by all age groups and economic classes, are one of the food products most favored by consumers and, representing 3% of the value generated by food goods, are found in most Portuguese homes [28,29]. However, this product, which is often associated with snacking moments, has been declining in sales due to increased competition from healthier options that end up taking their place in consumers' lives, which means that this sector must reinvent itself and provide consumers products that are compatible with their healthier lifestyles, to slow down the decline in consumption [29,56]. After choosing the object of study - biscuit packaging - it was also decided that it would be carried out in two hypermarkets since they sell a wide variety of food products. The food products were chosen with the advice of a nutrition professional, nutritionist Ana Sofia Ramos, registered with the Order of Nutritionists under number 4860N, and analyzed using the Label Decoder mentioned above [27]. The questionnaire survey was carried out online via Google Forms and was available between 24 September and 4 October 2021. The questions are shown (Table 1).


Results

Observation

To find out about the market and the options available for biscuits in the healthy eating category, an observational study was carried out, which is described in the following (Table 2).

Questionnaire survey

With a random sample, the survey received a total of 400 responses, of which 72.25% were female and 27.75% male (Graph 1), with the majority aged over 51 and between 36 and 50 (Graph 2). Of all the respondents, 44.3% have a bachelor's degree and 28.25% have secondary education. 19.25% said they had a master's degree and few people had postgraduate or PhD degrees (Graph 3). Regarding their district of residence, the overwhelming majority (75.75%) live in Lisbon, with 6.75% in Setubal and 6% in Porto (Graph 4).

Concern about food and shopping habits

As can be seen (Graph 5), concern for health is a factor that has been on the rise. However, it was essential to understand whether this was accompanied by due attention to eating habits. 89.5% of respondents (358) replied that they are concerned about food and only 8.75% (35) said "No", with 1.75% replying "Don't know/no answer" (Graph 6). Of the 400 responses, 292 indicate the number of individuals whose eating habits are in line with their concern for food, compared to 96 who indicate that their eating practices are not (Graph 7). Since worldwide obesity and various diseases associated with poor diet have been increasing, we asked the participants if they had any pathologies associated with poor diet. 290 of them answered in the negative and 105 in the affirmative (Graph 8).

Eating out

People were also asked about their eating habits when dining out. When faced with 4 statements, respondents assessed their level of agreement using a 5-point Likert scale, where 1 = "Strongly disagree" and 5 = "Strongly agree". About the statement "When eating out, I always choose a quick option", most responses were between levels 1, 2, and 3, with 107, 124, and 116 responses respectively. Only 51 people agree/strongly agree and 2 people say they don't know (chart 9). Regarding the statement, "When eating out, I stick to my usual diet", the largest number of responses were at level 3, where neither agree nor disagree. However, 138 people disagreed and 109 agreed, as well as 5 who did not indicate their level of agreement (Graph 9). The data obtained from the last two questions is somewhat contradictory. In the statement "When eating out, I choose a healthier option", most responses are between levels 1, 2, and 3, with values of 45, 110, and 152, respectively. Only 56 people indicated that they agreed and 31 that they totally agreed, and 6 Doesn’t Know/Doesn´t Answer (DK/DA) (chart 9). This suggests that when people eat out, they opt for less healthy options. But for the last statement, "When eating out, I choose a less healthy option", 302 answers are between levels 1, 2, and 3 and only 88 indicate that they agree/strongly agree. In other words, this is not an issue with much relevance and impact for individuals and, when they eat out, there is no rule as to the type of food they will eat.


Graph 1: Gender


Graph 2: Age.



Graph 3: Academic qualifications.



Graph 4: District of residence.



Graph 5: In your opinion, and in general, is the concern with food something that has been increasing?.



Graph 6: Do you consider yourself to be a person concerned about food?



Graph 7: Do your eating habits meet this concern?.