7 The use of food labels to manage the allergy - Part A
7.1. General use of food labels
7.2. How often food labels are used in the selection of packaged foods
7.3. How trustworthy labels are perceived to be
7.4. How often unsure about food label information
7.5. Action taken when unsure of an ingredient or a product label
7.6. Attitudes towards and utility of disclaimers
7.7. Overall ability to recognise substances of concern
7.8. Ability to recognise substances of concern on actual food labels
7.1 General use of food labels (Q22)
Respondents were presented with a series of statements about selecting foods using food labels and asked to indicate the degree to which they agreed or disagreed with each statement. The statements and the results are shown in Table 7.1a.
Table 7.1a Attitudes towards food labels
Q22 Here are a number of things people have said about selecting food products. Please tell me how strongly you agree or disagree with each statement.
. | I’m very interested in food label information | Some information on labels is really useful | Hard to tell advertising and standard information apart | It’s easy to understand and use the label information | I’ve always been able to find information I need on labels | I just focus on one or two key things | I don’t have enough time when shopping to read the labels |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n=510) | (n=510) | (n=510) | (n=510) | (n=510) | (n=510) | (n=510) |
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % |
Strongly agree | 75 | 38 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
Tend to agree | 18 | 51 | 30 | 37 | 32 | 17 | 4 |
Neither agree nor disagree | 4 | 8 | 23 | 16 | 10 | 7 | 9 |
Tend to disagree | 1 | 2 | 28 | 29 | 36 | 24 | 27 |
Strongly disagree | 1 | 1 | 8 | 13 | 18 | 48 | 56 |
Note: columns do not add to 100% as those who said 'don't know' are not shown.
New Zealanders were significantly more likely than Australians to disagree (eitherstronglyortend to) with two statements in particular [1] :
- It’s hard to tell which parts of the label are advertising and which are standard information manufacturers have to put on (44% versus 34% respectively); and
- I’ve always been able to find any information I need on a food or drink label (63% versus 51% respectively).
Respondents who were members of an allergy support group were significantly more likely than those who were non-members to disagree (either strongly or tend to) with the following attitudinal statements [2] :
- I’ve always been able to find any information I need on a food or drink label (65% versus 40% respectively);
- When I read the labels I just focus on one or two key things (81% versus 62% respectively);
- It’s easy to understand and use the information on food labels (53% versus 30% respectively); and
- I don’t have time to read food labels when I’m shopping even if I wanted to (87% versus 80% respectively).
For one statement, the reverse was true, with members of allergy support groups significantly more likely than non-members to agree (either strongly or tend to) with [3] :
- I find some information on food labels really useful or important (92% versus 86% respectively).
This question was first asked in a general consumer research that was conducted in 2002 [4] , and thus in Table 7.1b, the results for this current allergen survey are compared to the results attained for the total sample [5] in the previous research.
Q22 Here are a number of things people have said about selecting food products. Please tell me how strongly you agree or disagree with each statement.
Although many variances were evident, the three major areas of divergence between the two sample groups were:
- a significantly greater number of allergen survey participants were inclined to strongly agree that they were very interested in food label information (75% versus 32% respectively); and
- significantly more allergen survey participants were inclined to strongly disagree that they:
- just focus on one or two key things (48% versus 5% respectively); and
- don't have enough time when shopping to read the labels (56% versus 15% respectively) (FSANZ 2003).
The differences seen indicate that those using labels to avoid allergens take a great interest in food labels and read them thoroughly through necessity, even though it is time consuming.
7.2 How often food labels are used in the selection of packaged foods (Q23)
Respondents were asked how often they looked at the information on food labels when buying a product. Results are shown in Table 7.2a.
Table 7.2a How often food labels are looked at
Q23 When buying packaged foods in general, how often do you look at the food labels? PLEASE TICK one BOX only
| . |
total sample | Membership of ALLERGY SUPPORT GROUP | |
| . | Yes | No | |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n=510) | (n= 259) | (n= 247) |
. | % | % | % |
Only when I buy a product for the first time | 16 | b 6 | a 27 |
Only occasionally when I buy a product | 4 | 2 | 5 |
Most of the times I buy a product | 32 | 34 | 31 |
Every time I buy a product | 47 | b 58 | a 36 |
Not answered | <1 | <1 | <1 |
Total | 99* | 100 | 99* |
ab Indicates categories where there was a significant difference between the results in each column (significance at the 95% confidence level )
* Does not add to 100% due to rounding.
Almost half of respondents (47%) said they check the labels every time they buy a product, while one in six (16%) only checked when they buy the product for the first time.
Again there was a difference in the degree to which labels were checked, by membership of a support group, with significantly more members than non-members saying they check every time they buy a product (58% versus 36% respectively). Non-members were significantly more likely than members to say they check only when they buy the product for the first time (27% versus 6% respectively).
The results attained in the general consumer research that was conducted in 2002 [1] for the two label items that were of particular importance to those with food allergies: i.e. the ingredients list and the allergen declaration [2] , are shown in Table 7.2b for reference [3] .
Table 7.2b How often food labels are looked at
Q When buying packaged foods in general, how often do you look at … (name of label element) ? one response only
.
| . | consumer survey | |
| . | Ingredients list | Allergen declaration |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n= 1277) | (n= 235) |
| % | % |
Only when I buy a product for the first time | 31 | 23 |
Only occasionally when I buy a product | 18 | 20 |
Most of the times I buy a product | 32 | 28 |
Every time I buy a product | 20 | 30 |
Total | 101* | 101* |
* Does not add to 100% due to rounding.
The proportion of respondents in the general consumer labelling survey who checked the labelsevery time they buy a productwas much less than in the allergen labelling survey. This could be expected, since avoidance of allergens is a serious issue for those with food allergies.
7.3 How trustworthy labels are perceived to be (Q24)
Respondents were asked how much they believe they can trust the information that is given on food labels. Results are shown in Table 7.3a.
Table 7.3a How trustworthy food labels are perceived to be
Q24 How much do you feel you can trust the information that is given on food labels? PLEASE TICK one BOX only
| . | total sample | Membership of ALLERGY SUPPORT GROUP | |
| . | Yes | No | |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n=510) | (n= 259) | (n= 247) |
. | % | % | % |
I completely trust what the labels say | 4 | 2 | 5 |
I’m pretty sure I can trust what the labels say | 57 | b 51 | a 63 |
I’m not sure whether to trust the labels or not | 39 | b 47 | a 31 |
Can’t say / don’t know | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Total | 101* | 100 | 100 |
ab Indicates categories where there was a significant difference between the results in each column (significance at the 95% confidence level )
* Does not add to 100% due to rounding.
Just over half of respondents (57%) said they were pretty sure they can trust what the labels say, while two in five (39%) said they were not sure whether to trust the labels or not.
Again, there was a difference in the degree to which labels were trusted, by membership of a support group. Significantly more members than non-members said they were not sure whether to trust the labels or not (47% versus 31% respectively). The non-members were significantly more likely than members to say they were pretty sure they can trust what the labels say (63% versus 51% respectively).
The results attained in a general consumer labelling survey that was conducted in 2002 [4] for this question [5] in relation to two label elements, ingredients lists and allergen declarations, are shown in Table 7.3b.
Table 7.3b How trustworthy food labels are perceived to be
Q How much do you feel you can trust the information that is given on food labels? PLEASE TICK one BOX only
| . | consumer survey [6] | |
| . | Ingredients list | Allergen declaration |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n= 1277) | (n= 235) |
. | % | % |
I completely trust what the labels say | 29 | 37 |
I’m pretty sure I can trust what the labels say | 54 | 53 |
I’m not sure whether to trust the labels or not | 17 | 10 |
Total | 100 | 100 |
ab Indicates categories where there was a significant difference between the results in each column (significance at the 95% confidence level )
* Does not add to 100% due to rounding.
For both the label elements measured in the consumer labelling research, the levels of confidence were significantly higher than was recorded for the more general question relating to 'food labels' in the allergen labelling survey. This suggests that many of those with allergies have experienced some difficulty with the labelling of ingredients contributing to their lower level of trust.
7.4 How often unsure about food label information (Q25)
Respondents were asked how often they feel unsure about particular ingredients or foods when reading the labels with regards to concerns about the presence of potential allergens. Results are shown in Table 7.4.
Table 7.4 How often unsure about food items or ingredients on labels
Q25 In general, when reading food labels because of concerns about allergens, how often are you unsure about food items or particular ingredients? PLEASE TICK one BOX only
.
| . | total sample | Membership of ALLERGY SUPPORT GROUP | |
| . | Yes | No | |
base: all respondents ( n) | (n=510) | (n= 259) | (n= 247) |
| % | % | % |
Always unsure | 6 | 7 | 5 |
Often unsure | 26 | b 34 | 17 |
Sometimes unsure | 66 | b 57 | a 74 |
Never unsure | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Don’t know | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Total | 101* | 100 | 100 |
ab Indicates categories where there was a significant difference between the results in each column (significance at the 95% confidence level )
* Does not add to 100% due to rounding.
Very few respondents said they were never unsure about food items or ingredients on labels (2%) with regards to concerns about the presence of potential allergens. Two thirds said they were sometimes unsure (66%) and a quarter (26%) said they were often unsure.
There was a difference in the degree of uncertainty by whether the respondent was a member of a support group; with significantly more members than non-members saying they were often unsure (34% versus 17% respectively). Non-members were significantly more likely than members to say they were sometimes unsure(74% versus 57% respectively).
Part 7B |
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