Consumer perceived healthiness and willingness to try functional milk desserts. Influence of ingredient,ingredient name and health claim

A conjoint study was carried out in order to study the influence of two functional ingredients (antioxidants and fiber), the name used to declare the addition of the ingredient (common vs scientific name), and the type of health claim (no claim, ‘enhanced function’ and ‘disease reduced risk’ claims) on consumers’ perceived healthiness and willingness to try functional milk desserts.The use of compounds or scientific names might not be recommended as they could have a negative impact on consumers. If a functional food manufacturer wants to emphasize the use of a novel ingredient, the ingredient could be declared using its scientific name but incorporating a health claim on the label, in order to achieve a positive association in consumers’ mind between the ingredient and its health effect. Besides, consumers showed the same attitude towards ‘enhanced function’ or ‘reduced disease risk’ claims.Women and old people seemed to be the most positive groups toward the evaluated functional foods. Women gave more importance than men to the type of name used to declare the addition of the functional ingredient, which could be probably attributed to the fact that women are more familiar with the health effects of fiber and antioxidants than men. Besides, young people emphasized the disease preventing claims, while older people tended to be also interested in claims that focus short term effects on health.     

The influence of health claims and nutritional composition on consumers’ yoghurt preferences

The use of health claims on foods with a poor nutritional composition could pose a risk of misleading some groups of consumers in their food choices. This study aimed to explore the influence of the use of claims on consumers’ preferences for yoghurts with a different nutritional composition and the influence of more and less familiar claims on food choices. The study was conducted on 371 consumers using conjoint methodology and further cluster analysis. Fruit yoghurt was used as a base product. We investigated the impact of the following product attributes on consumers’ preferences: presence/absence of a probiotic and fat metabolism claim; sugar content; and fat content. The results suggest that, while consumers generally consider the nutritional composition of yoghurt to be more important than the tested claims, some groups of consumers are more sensitive to the use of health-related statements. We observed the consumers’ generally positive preference for a familiar probiotic claim, and their negative preference for a non-familiar fat metabolism claim. Overall, these results indicate that some groups of consumers are more sensitive to the use of health-related communications and are therefore more exposed to the risk of being misled if the composition of the yoghurt they buy is in fact less favourable. It would be beneficial if nutrient profiles were introduced to limit the use of claims on foods.     

Nutrition and Health Claims as Marketing Tools

European regulations mandate that only substantiated and approved statements can be used as nutrition- and health-related claims in food marketing. A thorough understanding of consumer perceptions of these approved claims is needed to assess their impact on both the purchase intention of functional foods and the development of innovative functional food concepts. In this paper, a conceptual framework on the European consumers’ perception of nutrition and health claims on these functional foods is proposed. Through a literature review, common independent variables are structured, and an analysis of these variables shows that nutrition and health claims are mostly only perceived positive by specific target consumers (who need the product, accept the ingredient, understand the benefit, and trust the brand). These consumers indicate that the products with substantiated and approved claims help them in reaching overall health goals. This increased expectation in functional efficacy may mediate an increase in repurchase intent, overall liking, and the amount consumers are willing to spend. Other consumers, however, may have adverse reactions towards nutrition and health claims on functional foods. Implications for the consumer and the industry are discussed.     

Does information about the source of functional ingredients influence consumer perception of functional milk desserts?

BACKGROUND: The aims of the present study were to study the influence of information about the source of two functional ingredients (antioxidants and fibre) on consumer perception of functional milk dessert concepts and to evaluate whether this influence depends on consumer attitudes towards health and hedonic characteristics of foods. RESULTS: Scores for expected liking decreased when information about the source of fibre or antioxidants was incorporated, which could be explained considering that when consumers knew the source of the functional ingredient they imagine the flavour of the source in the milk concept. This decrease in expected liking led to a decrease in consumer willingness to purchase, showing the importance of hedonic expectations on the acceptance of functional foods. Consumers with different attitudes towards health and hedonic characteristics of foods reacted differently towards information about the source of functional ingredients. CONCLUSION: Providing information about the source of functional ingredients would not be recommended as it might create negative taste expectations to consumers and a concomitant decrease in their willingness to purchase. These show that consumers would not compromise on the taste of milk desserts for health. Thus, the development of functional foods that taste worse than conventional ones may be a risky option. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Claiming health in food products

Health-related information is increasingly used on food products to convey their benefits. Health claims as a subcategory of these messages link the beneficial component, functions or health outcomes with specific products. For consumers, health claims seem to carry the message of increased healthiness, but not necessarily making the product more appealing. The wording of the claim seems to have little impact on claim perception, yet the health image of carrier products is important. From consumer-related factors the relevance and attitudes towards functional foods play a role, whereas socio-demographic factors have only minor impact and the impact seems to be case-dependent. Familiarity with claims and functional foods increase perceived healthiness and acceptance of these products. Apparently consumers make rather rational interpretations of claims and their benefits when forced to assess the information, but we still know relatively little about consumer understanding of the message content in claims and even less about the assessment of personal relevance of the claimed benefits. In future studies more emphasis should be put on including contextual influences and realistic conditions in assessing consumer understanding and use of health claims in purchase decisions.     

Impact of nutritional claims on consumer preferences for bread with varied fiber and salt content

High consumption of bread provides a lot of salt, but it can also provide a lot of fiber to the diet. The use of labels on bread could encourage consumers to choose bread with improved nutritional value, i.e., with reduced salt and increased fiber content. The aim of the study was to explore the impact of the different nutritional information on preferences regarding bread (wheat plain roll) with reduced sodium content and bread enriched with fiber. The survey was carried out among a group of 330 adult consumers in 2015 in the southern part of Poland. The conjoint analysis design included four product attributes – two nutritional claims (“Low salt content” and “Source of dietary fiber”), fiber content, and salt content. The mean part-worth utilities of individual product attributes and the relative importance of attributes within the sample were calculated using SAS procedures. Next, cluster analysis, based on the individual utilities, was undertaken to identify groups (clusters) of consumers with similar preferences. Salt content had higher relative importance for the participants in comparison with both claims, while the relative importance of dietary fiber content was the lowest. The relative importance of both nutritional claims was almost equal, namely 25.5% for the fiber claim and 25.4% for the salt claim. The results of cluster analysis showed strong heterogeneity in consumer reactions to the attributes of the tested product. To conclude, providing information about the salt and fiber content of bread is necessary to encourage a healthy choice, but the claims placed on bread packaging seem to be insufficient as they contribute to the avoidance of the product. Increasing consumer awareness of nutrition claims of foods is required.     

Consumer insights on prepackaged Cheddar cheese shreds using focus groups,conjoint analysis,and qualitative multivariate analysis

This study established attractive attributes and drivers of purchase for prepackaged Cheddar cheese shreds. Seven focus groups of Cheddar cheese shred consumers (n = 61) were conducted to probe consumer beliefs regarding packaging, ingredients, label claims, and applications of prepackaged Cheddar cheese shreds. Subsequently, an online survey was developed utilizing the key attributes from the focus groups. The survey (n = 1,288) included maximum difference scaling, Kano questions, and adaptive choice-based conjoint analysis. Additionally, 9 different commercial Cheddar cheese shreds varying in color, shred thickness, brand, and price were selected for a follow-up qualitative multivariate analysis to gain further consumer insight on attribute importance. Consumers (n = 13) were provided with commercial packages of shreds to evaluate over a 4-week period. Consumers journaled their likes and dislikes after use of each cheese shred and subsequently participated in a final 2.5-h focus group and projective mapping exercise. Consumers placed highest importance on price, followed by nutrition claims, color, sharpness, thickness, and label claims. Four consumer clusters were identified from conjoint utility scores. One consumer cluster exhibited preference for value-added features such as nutrition claims and brand, and another consumer cluster placed importance on shred color, whereas the other 2 groups were driven primarily by price. The qualitative multivariate analysis results confirmed the focus group and survey results: meltability, orange color, lack of clumps, ability to reseal the bag, and desirable “Cheddar” flavor were also preferred Cheddar shred qualities.     

Influence of packaging information on consumer liking of chocolate milk

Chocolate milk varies widely in flavor, color, and viscosity, and liking is influenced by these properties. Additionally, package labels (declared fat content) and brand are some of the extrinsic factors that may influence consumer perception. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of packaging labels and brand name on consumer liking and purchase intent of chocolate milk. A consumer acceptance test, conjoint analysis survey, and Kano analysis were conducted. One hundred eight consumers evaluated 7 chocolate milks with and without brand or package information in a 2-d crossover design. A conjoint analysis survey and Kano analysis were conducted after the consumer acceptance test. Results were evaluated by 2-way ANOVA and multivariate analyses. Declared fat content and brand influenced overall liking and purchase intent for chocolate milks to differing degrees. A subsequent conjoint analysis (n = 250) revealed that fat content was a driver of choice for purchasing chocolate milk followed by sugar content and brand. Brand name was less important for purchase intent of chocolate milk than fat or sugar content. Among fat content of chocolate milk, 2 and 1% fat level were most appealing to consumers, and reduced sugar and regular sugar were equally important for purchase intent. Kano analysis confirmed that fat content (whole milk, 1, or 2% fat chocolate milk) was an attractive attribute for consumer satisfaction, more so than brand. Organic labeling did not affect the purchase decision of chocolate milk; however, Kano results revealed that having an organic label on a package positively influenced consumer satisfaction. Findings from this study can help chocolate milk producers as well as food marketers better target their product labels with attributes that drive consumer choice of chocolate milk.     

How do Brazilian consumers perceive a non-traditional and innovative fruit juice? An approach looking at the packaging

Consumer interest in nutritious and innovative foods encourages the development of products based on raw materials with nutraceutical potential. The health benefits provided by pomegranate have been recognized; therefore, the development of pomegranate juice may match consumer expectations regarding this goal. However, the concept has to first be accepted by the consumer. The aim of the study was to utilize a rating based conjoint analysis to investigate how Brazilian consumers perceive pomegranate juice by identifying the role of packaging attributes relevant to the consumer's intention to purchase. Five factors were considered in the study: technology used in the juice production (high hydrostatic pressure – HHP – a technology that preserves nutritional and sensory properties), antioxidants, price, preservatives, and colorant. Eight hypothetical pomegranate juice packages were created following an incomplete block design and evaluated by 150 fruit juice consumers. Three clusters were identified. The average results revealed that antioxidants were the attribute of greatest relative importance to cluster 1 (RI: 36%), followed by HHP (RI: 25%) and colorants (14%). Consumers in cluster 2 considered price as the most important attribute (RI: 41%), followed by antioxidants (RI: 21%) and HHP (RI: 18%). Cluster 3, as well as cluster 2, considered price the most important attribute (RI: 28%), followed by antioxidants (RI: 26%) and HHP (RI: 22%). The results showed that consumers valued information on the health benefits of antioxidants as well as on the technology, suggesting that both types of information may be relevant tools to increase the intention to purchase the product. The application of HHP for pomegranate juice processing was positively perceived by consumers, suggesting a potential commercial application in the Brazilian industry.     

The role of time constraints in consumer understanding of health claims

The growing market for healthy foods has contributed to increased interest in communicating the health-related benefits of food products. Health claims are becoming an increasingly used instrument to communicate such benefits. In the European Union, consumer understanding of health claims was set as condition for use in order to protect consumers against misleading claims. However, consumer understanding has received little attention compared to consumer perceptions of claims. Consumers only have limited time in a normal shopping situation, which can impact the meanings they attach to claims. This study’s aim was to examine the effect of time constraints on consumer understanding of health claims and the potential link between understanding and intention to buy. A survey conducted among respondents in Denmark (N = 1483) used a time constraint manipulation and varied the health claim shown to respondents when assessing consumer understanding. The results showed that consumers’ objective understanding is lower under time constraint. Specific inferences were associated with increased intention to buy. Implications for public policy and food industry are discussed.     

Health Risks and Adverse Reactions to Functional Foods

Functional foods have become increasingly popular with consumers anxious to mitigate the effects of an unhealthy lifestyle or aging. In spite of attractive health claims, these products do not have legal or regulatory status in most countries and are regulated through their health claims. Regulation of functional foods by health claims does not address health risks and adverse effects of these products. In this essay regulatory aspects of functional foods are reviewed along with adverse effects published in the peer-reviewed literature. We detail why the lack of an internationally accepted definition of functional foods places consumers at risk of adverse outcomes. Our review will assist regulatory agencies, manufacturers and consumer groups to assess the benefits and reduce the risks associated with these products.     

Opportunities for product innovation using authorised European Union health claims

For authorisation of a health claim in Europe, applicants must follow the procedures in the legislation and in the guidelines for submission of a dossier, as well as the guidance in the European Food Safety Authority's opinions on the scientific requirements for health claims. In addition to the authorised functional benefits of the vitamins and minerals, certain foods and food constituents offer beneficial physiological effects that extend beyond traditionally accepted nutritional effects. The elucidation of these effects is becoming more important, as reflected by the increasing amount of nutrition research and number of product innovations. Provided that they are scientifically substantiated, health claims linked to food and food supplement products can help consumers make well‐informed food choices. The present review focuses on scientific substantiation and consumer understanding of health claims, and it aims to help those involved in academic research, food product development and consumer education about food and health.     

酸奶产品健康相关信息对各类消费者选购意图的影响

目的:研究不同消费群体对酸奶的健康相关因素的关注程度,以及对酸奶消费的影响。方法:以随机访问的方式对北京市615名消费者进行问卷调查,数据使用SPSS 18.0进行分析。结果:女性、教育程度较高、接受过健康培训和关注营养信息者对酸奶的健康益处了解较全面。女性、较年轻、有过健康培训、关注健康信息的人群饮用酸奶的频率较高。年龄、人均月收入、教育程度、健康培训与酸奶风味和口感的重视程度呈显著负相关,而与营养价值和保健价值的重视程度呈显著正相关。女性、月收入高、教育程度高、接受过健康培训、关注健康信息的人群倾向于选择带有营养声称的酸奶。结论:不同消费群体对酸奶的消费选择特点有显著差异。     

The influence of involvement on purchase intention for new world wine

Understanding the ways in which consumers’ involvement levels influence how they use different cues to make purchase decisions has been a topic of research for several decades. This study, which provides a specific extension to the more general study by Lockshin et al. [Lockshin, L., Wade, J., d’Hauteville, F., & Perrouty, J. P. (2006). Using simulations from discrete choice experiments to measure consumer sensitivity to brand, region, price, and awards in wine choice. Food Quality and Preference, 17(3–4) 166–178] examines the moderating effects of wine product involvement and wine purchase involvement on wine purchase decisions. A sample of 187 New Zealand regular wine consumers participated in a conjoint experiment using the variety New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. The product stimuli were defined by three attributes: (i) presence/absence of region of origin information, (ii) price level, and (iii) presence/absence of a price discount. Purchase intention ratings, which were analysed using multiple regression and non-parametric bootstraps, suggested that the cue pertaining to information about region of origin was more important for consumers high in product involvement and purchase involvement than for consumers with low levels of involvement. There was also some evidence to suggest that consumers who are high in product involvement place less importance on price and, that consumers who are low in purchase involvement place greater importance on price discounts.     

Dissecting qualified health claims: evidence from experimental studies

This paper reviews recent consumer studies evaluating comprehension of a novel form of food labeling, qualified health claims, now permitted by FDA. The joint goals of qualified health claims are to encourage firms to make accurate, science-based claims about the health benefits of their products while helping consumers prevent disease and improve their health through sound dietary decisions using enhanced nutrition information. This paper examines whether consumers can differentiate between multiple levels of health claims and determines if a front label visual aid helps consumer understanding. Results of experimental consumer attitude studies are presented which suggest that people do not perceive significant differences between the three levels of qualified claims and traditional (unqualified or SSA) health claims. An additional experiment suggests that a visual aid (report card) may be an important device to help consumers distinguish between the levels of health claims. However, thought-listing data suggests that consumers use the report card to draw inferences about overall product quality rather than the strength of scientific evidence supporting the health claim. Implications of these findings for the future regulatory oversight and marketing of functional food products are discussed.     

How do consumers perceive reformulated foods after the implementation of nutritional warnings? Case study with frankfurters in Chile

Nutritional warnings have emerged as a promising front-of-package nutrition labelling scheme to discourage consumption of products with high content of nutrients associated with non-communicable diseases. One of the objectives of this policy is to encourage the food industry to reformulate their products. However, information about consumers’ perception of reformulated products in the context of the implementation of this policy is still limited. The aim of this study was to assess the relative influence of different types of reformulation on consumers’ perceived healthfulness and purchase intention, using frankfurters as case study. A conjoint analysis was implemented considering a fractional factorial design involving 5 2-level variables: brand type (artisanal/industrial), sodium reduction (with/without), saturated fat reduction (with/without), fibre claim (with/without) and cholesterol claim (with/without). An online survey with 494 consumers was implemented one year after the implementation of nutritional warnings in Chile. Participants were randomly divided into two groups, one of which evaluated purchase intention (n = 249) and the other evaluated perceived healthfulness (n = 245). Data were analysed using analysis of variance and cluster analysis. Results showed that reformulated products without nutritional warnings for sodium and saturated fat were perceived as more healthful and had higher purchase intention scores than then regular counterparts. On the contrary, nutrient claims did not have a relevant effect on consumers’ perception. Heterogeneity in consumers’ reaction to the reformulated products was found and was mainly related to consumption frequency of the product category. Results provide insights for policy makers and food companies in countries considering the implementation of nutritional warnings.     

Consumer Valuations and Preference Heterogeneity for a Novel Functional Food

ABSTRACT:  Recent trends in the marketing of functional foods suggest that multiple-benefit products are becoming more common. Yet it is unclear which consumers are most interested in, or best served by, such novel or new generation functional foods. With emerging scientific evidence of efficacy and more diverse products offered for sale, a broader range of consumers are likely to become interested in dietary interventions to enhance health. Consumers will likely respond based on a range of motivation, health conditions, and knowledge levels suggesting "one size will not fit all." Given such an evolving marketing environment, this paper presents 1 research technique exploring differences in consumer preferences and valuations for a novel functional food product—a tomato juice containing soy. A discrete choice experiment is applied to examine consumer valuation of this novel functional food. Data were collected from 1704 households in Ohio through a mail survey. The choice experiment manipulates whether or not the product is organic, whether it contains natural or fortified nutrients, and product price. Estimates of consumer willingness to pay a premium price are based on conditional logit and mixed logit models, which permit an examination of consumer preference and valuation heterogeneity for key product attributes. Results indicate that health benefits and ingredient naturalness are positively valued, but such preferences and valuations depend on an individual's education, income, and food purchase behavior. Naturally occurring nutrients are preferred over fortification. Considerable heterogeneity is found in the data suggesting that a range of market segments may exist.     

Influence of carrot fibre powder addition on rheological,microstructure and sensory characteristics of stirred-type yogurt

The incorporation of 1% (E1) and 2% (E2) of the carrot fibre powder obtained from carrot discards to yogurts was studied. The effect of the fibre addition on the physicochemical parameters, water-holding capacity (WHC), microbial counts, rheological, microstructure and sensory characteristics of yogurts was studied in comparison with control yogurt without fibre addition (C). Titratable acidity, global composition and microbial counts showed a similar trend among yogurts. Fibre particles seemed to change the organisation of protein aggregates of the gel network. An open structure with bigger aggregates was observed in E1 and E2 yogurts, while the microstructure appeared more homogenous and without granules in C. However, carrot fibre increased the WHC of yogurt. All the yogurt samples exhibited shear-thinning behaviour and no differences were found in the rheological parameters, excepting for E2 that presented a decrease in apparent viscosity at 200 s^-1 compared with C and E1 samples. Trained sensory panel (12 members) indicated an increase in brownish colour, strange flavour, grittiness and aftertaste and a decrease in overall appearance, odour, sweetness and creaminess in yogurts enriched in fibre. In order to mask these negative characteristics, E1 formulation was produced in the same way but strawberry flavour and colour were added. A consumer test (101 volunteers), purchase intention and a Check All That Apply (CATA) questionnaires were carried out. Flavoured and coloured E1 yogurt was pleasant for consumers, since 93% of the consumers selected positive degrees of acceptability and 68% of them manifested that they are willing to consume the product. Therefore, the addition of carrot fibre powder in yogurts could be an alternative to incorporate dietary fibres into dairy foods.     

Labelling effects on consumer intention to purchase for soybean oil

The effect of some soybean oil label attributes on consumer intention to purchase was evaluated by using conjoint analysis. Four attributes with two levels each were chosen and manipulated. They were: brand name (familiar and unfamiliar), price (high and low), nutritional information (with and without cholesterol, and rich in vitamin E) and soybean type (with and without the term “transgenic”). A complete factorial design was used and 16 hypothetical soybean oil packages were created and evaluated by 144 consumers based on their intention to purchase. The term transgenic had a negative impact on the purchase intention of 76% of consumers, i.e., they declared an intention not to buy the transgenic soybean oil. Overall purchase intention was affected by price, with the low priced oils obtaining a higher purchase intention.