Do consumer really want food labelling?

In a survey recently done by the Food Safety Information Council (FSIC) for Australian Food Safety Week, there was a very low percentage of those surveyed who actually read the cooking / reheating instructions and storage instructions on the processed products they bought. It was a figure of less than 20 percent, which is very scary from both a food safety and legal view point.

If people are not following the instructions then the food may not be safe for consumption and we could have food poisoning.

This is bad enough, but it is the legal issue that is a huge concern. The Food standards Code in Australia / New Zealand, and similar laws in other countries, has very strict labelling requirements. These requirements are in place to give the customer (the one buying the food) and the consumer (the one eating it) enough information to ensure the food is safe.

Manufacturers go to great lengths and much expense to ensure that their product labels are correct, and one of the main reasons for product recalls is when they don’t meet these labelling requirements.

If the FSIC survey shows that a lot of people are not even reading the most important food safety information, what else are they not looking at? Which raises the simple question of “why do we have these labelling requirements and therefore can manufacturers stop having to comply with them”?

There are groups and individuals within our community that need to see specific information on product labels to determine if the food is safe for them to consume. So, are all these labelling requirements just for these groups? If so, then manufacturers absolutely must continue to meet these requirements and recall those products that do not comply.

However, recent research done by Cornell University is showing that consumers are wanting more information on their food products. The study of 351 shoppers showed that there would be increased sales if a food showed the words “free of…” on the label, along with some description of the negative effects of whatever it is free from.

The study was published in November 2013 in the journal Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy

Interestingly just the words “free of or from…” did not generate as much interest in purchase as having the negative description as well.

So we are faced with a dilemma, do people generally want more information or their food product labels or don’t they?

This article has been written by Rachelle Williams, The Green Food Safety Coach.