MARKETING

MANAGEMENT
FIELD STUDY

SUBMITTED BY- ARIN SHARMA

ENROLLMENT NO. 02221301720
PROGRAM- BBA
3RD SEM, 2ND SHIFT & DIVISION –A

SUBMITTED TO – DR. Sandeep Kumar

 Introduction

According to Buttress et al. (2004), one of the major health challenges is to

identify ways to help consumers making the appropriate food choices. In
2004, World Health Organization (WHO) had recommended that nutritional
label was one of the strategies to assist the public in making healthier food
choice. Nutritional label is intended to inform customer the available
choices and to stimulate the consumption and production of healthy
product (Baltas, 2001). Nutritional label can affect the consumers’
purchasing behavior significantly because some evidences reveal that the
provision of nutrition information may allow consumers to switch
consumption away from 'unhealthy' products in those food categories
toward 'healthy' products more easily (Zarkin & Anderson, 1992). It also
allows consumers to make an informed judgment of a product's overall
value (APO, 2002). Therefore, the nutritional panel can be concluded as a
form of guidance to a better diet and a healthier life (FDA, 1998) because
consumers will have the ability to choose their diets which depend partly on
the quantity and quality of information available through a variety of
sources, including nutrition panel on food labels (Caswell & Padberg)
 Methodology
This study has identified and synthesized a compilation of more than 20
years of empirical researches. The relevant materials of academic
publications are extracted from the following databases: Emerald, Science
Direct and Social Science Index. Perusals are made to the abstracts of the
studies to determine the relevancy of the papers. 1999). This paper is
prepared with the aim to review the previous researches to fully understand
the meaning of the nutritional label, the definition of the term ‘the use of
nutritional label’, the role of nutritional label in influencing customer buying
decision, the types of nutritional label formats and the direction for future
research in nutritional label

Defining Nutritional Label

According to Koe (1997), nutritional label can be defined as a description
used to inform the customer about the nutritional properties of a food,
which also help the customer in purchasing nutritious food and consuming
nutritionally balanced meals. Besides, according to Centre for Food Safety
in Hong Kong (Source: www.cfs.gov.hk), nutritional label is a systematic
way of presenting nutrition information of food product. It is presented in a
tabular format with headings such as “nutrition information”, “nutrition fact’,
or “nutrition label”. The nutritional label is required as a guide for the
consumer to make selection from a list of food products and to encourage
the consumption of healthy products (Baltas, 2001). In Malaysia, referring
to Malaysia Dietary guidelines in 2007 (Ministry of Health Malaysia, 2007)
the terminologies of nutritional label are defined as follows:-

a) Food labels.
Food labels include any tag, brand, mark, pictorial or other descriptive
matter, written, printed, stenciled, marked, painted, embossed or
impressed on, or attached to or included in, belonging to, or
accompanying any food.

b) Nutrition information panel.

A table found in one section of a food label declaring the amount of

nutrients contained in the foods.

c) Nutritional label.

A nutritional label is a list of nutrient level of a product displayed on the

food label. It is meant to provide the salient facts about the nutrition
contents of the product. According to the Centre for Food Safety in Hong
Kong (Source: www.cfs.gov.hk), nutrient value in the nutritional label will
be presented in various reference amounts such as per 100 g/mL, per
serving and per package

a) Per 100 g/mL

This is the common way to express energy and nutrient values. Usually
per 100 g is for solid food while per 100 mL is for food in liquid form. For
example, as shown in Figure 1, 100 g of Brand A biscuit contains 436
kcal (i.e.1831 kJ) of energy, 11 g of protein, 16 g of total fat, and so on.

b) Per Serving

It reflects the energy and nutrient contents of a specified amount (which

is called the serving size) of food. Serving size is the amount of food
people consume on a decent meal per session. The serving size is
determined by the manufacturer. It is expressed in metric unit such as
gram (g) or milliliter (mL). Sometimes, the serving size is expressed in
pieces, cups, tablespoons, teaspoons etc.

c) Per Package

For package that only contains a single serving of food (for example, a
carton of milk drink as shown in Figure 4), the amount of energy and
nutrients may be expressed as per package. It can be concluded that
the nutritional label in food package is the information source that
assists the customer in choosing suitable diets and avoiding unhealthy
food products.

What Does the Term ‘Use of Nutritional

Label’ mean?
There were studies done in 2008 regarding the level, or intensity, of the
usefulness of food labels to Spanish consumers and its relationship with
some consumers’ features (Gonzalez-Roa& CalatravaRequena, 2008
and Wills et al., 2009). The studies defined ‘the use of nutritional label’
as a “look at the nutritional label” of the food product. Gonzalez-Roa and
Calatrava-Requena (2008) conducted a research with 1500 Spanish
consumers. They categorized the respondents by regions and type of
settlements (rural, urban and metropolitan). Information was gathered
concerning whether or not consumers had consulted on the following
information on the food labels: calories, preservatives and coloring
substances, expiry date, geographical origin, ingredients, quality
certificates, nutritional composition, Genetically Modified (GM) food
components and health benefits. The researchers also studied on the
type of consumers’ features to find out whether there was a relationship
in regard with the use of nutritional label. Apparently, this paper did not
mention or discuss whether the nutritional label had influenced the
Spanish consumers in purchasing healthier foods (Gonzalez-Roa &
Calatrava-Requena, 2008). However, results of these studies showed
that female consumers referred to nutritional label more frequent than
the male consumer. The studies also revealed that 12.3% of
respondents never looked at the expiry date and 80.6% never looked for
Genetically Modified (GM) foods. For age type, people aged 55 years
old and above were found using the nutritional label in lesser intensity as
compared to younger people with the age ranging from 22 to 54 years
old. Under education feature, the researchers found out that educated
consumers use nutritional label as a source of information more frequent
than the less educated consumers. In regard with the regional section,
the highest score was in Cantabria area where the customers frequently
used the nutritional label, while the area of Castilla-La Mancha-
Extremadura scored the lowest (Gonzalez-Roa & Calatrava-Requena,
2008). According to Wills et al. (2009), the researchers used two studies
in reviewing the level of nutritional label use among consumers in
European countries to determine the type of the nutritional label most
preferred by the consumers and also to determine the usefulness level
of nutritional label among the consumers. The reviewing from both
papers concluded that most of the consumers in the European countries
preferred the use of nutritional label and it was also found that they were
more attracted to labeling on the front pack for easier reference and
more user-friendly. In term of nutrition knowledge, majority of the
consumers had already possessed the knowledge and know how to use
the nutritional label.

In addition, the study also concluded that reading the nutritional label
can influence and help the consumer in making a healthier food choice
(Wills et al., 2009). Other than that, the term ‘the use of nutritional label’
is also defined as “reading the nutritional label” (Harbor-Locure et al.,
2001; Aprile & Annunziata, 2005 and Godwin et al., 2006). Research
done by Harbor-Locure et al. in 2001, was to determine whether the
label use/ read or non-use/ not read was independent to the importance
ratings of selected nutritional and non-nutritional attributes on the labels
of fresh-fluid milks. The research also intended to assess the influence
of socio demographic and regional (SDR) to develop profiles of selected
groups of label users and non-users. Findings regarding the use of
nutritional label showed that eighty percent of the respondents reported
using or reading food labels when making food purchasing decisions.
Label users were more likely to regard calories, fat, sodium, and
cholesterol as very or extremely important factors in deciding whether to
buy fresh-fluid milk or not. Compared to the nutritional attributes, label
users placed less importance on non-nutritional attributes such as prices
and expiry dates when they were purchasing fresh-fluid milks. From the
findings, it could be concluded that the consumers who used or read the
nutritional label were intending to purchase healthier milk choice
(Harbor-Locure et al. 2001)). Aprile and Annunziata in their work in 2005
identified how often consumers read the labels, assessed the degree of
consumers’ familiarity with the different data included in the label,
identified the importance attached to the various details included in the
label, identified which information included in the label would mostly
affect consumers’ purchasing decisions and investigated the existence
of different clusters and developed a description of them. The result of
whether the nutritional label had influenced customers on their buying
decision revealed that those who were concerned with their health would
use the nutritional label as a source of information when buying healthier
foods mainly because they were giving priority to their healthy lifestyle
(Aprile & Annunziata, 2005). A research carried out by Godwin et al. in
2006 to understand the frequency of label reading and the likelihood that
individuals would thoroughly examine the label revealed that majority of
the respondents agreed that reading the information on the food
nutritional label helped them to be informed about the food they
consumed. But again, this study didn’t focus or mention whether the use
of nutritional label could help them in choosing a healthier food (Godwin
et al., 2006). Furthermore, the term ‘the use of nutritional labels’ is
considered as “an act of information searched by consumer” (Banterle &
Cavaliere, 2009; Grunert & Wills, 2007 and Grunert et al., 2010). Only
labels that were exposed to the consumers could be expected to have
any effects. The likelihood of exposure was increased if consumers
actually searched for the information on the label, though active search
was not a necessary precondition for the exposure, which might happen
unexpectedly. Exposure leads to effects on subsequent behavior only
when the information was perceived. Perception can be conscious or
subconscious, though conscious perception was expected to have
stronger effects on subsequent behavior. Perception leads to
understanding, which was the meaning that the consumer attached to
what was perceived (Grunert & Wills, 2007). In order for nutritional label
to have any effect, consumers must be exposed to them and must be
aware of them. The effect will then be mediated by consumer
understanding, which in turn will be affected by consumers’ nutrition
knowledge. Based on their understanding, consumers may then use the
label information to make inferences about the healthiness of the
product, which, together with other information (for example, about the
taste of the product) may affect the evaluation and eventually the
purchase decision with regard to the product (Grunert et al., 2010).

Types of Nutritional Label

There are two types of nutritional label formats. In Malaysia, back-of-

pack nutritional label is a common format that has been used by the
food and beverage industries in representing the nutrition contents in
their food products. According to the previous researches that had been
done in Europe, United State, Australia and New Zealand, the findings
concluded that majority of the consumers found out that back-of-pack
nutritional labels were confusing, especially on the numerical information
and the terminology used (Cowburn & Stockley, 2005; EUFIC, 2005;
Sadler, 1999; Shine, O’Reilly, & O’Sullivan, 1997 and Wandel, 1999). In
addition to that, according to the reviewed literature on nutritional label
format that was done by Cowburn and Stockley in 2005, it was
concluded that particular vulnerable groups such as older consumers
and consumers with lower levels of education and income were likely to
have difficulties in understanding nutritional labels. Their review also
showed that consumers had difficulty converting information from ‘g per
100 g’ to ‘g per serving’ and interpreting serving size information. It was
revealed that during shopping on food products, customers had to take
into account the contents of several nutrients simultaneously to ensure
they choose healthier foods. According to the study that had been done
by Black and Rayne in 1992, customers found that it was difficult to
make the nutrient comparison and to simplify their task, the customer
usually preferred to use a single nutrient (like fat) as the comparison
standard. This might lead to a wrong food choice because products that
were low in fat could be actually containing higher levels of sugar or salt.
In view of these problems, there is an urgent need for a simple
nutritional label that can summarize all the nutritional profiles to enable
easy understanding. Front-of-pack nutritional label is perceived to be a
perfect solution. ‘Front-of-pack label’ refers to labels positioned on the
front of packaged foods, delivering nutrition information to consumers in
various formats (Schor et al., 2010). According to Geiger et al. (1991)
and Scott & Worsley (1994), a front-of-pack format is more effective and
acts as the addition to the traditional numerical nutrition fact table on the
back of package. It is useful in assisting the customers making the
healthier food choice since it summarizes the whole nutritional profiles of
the packaged food. Another advantage of a simple label is that it
reduces the cognitive effort and time needed to process the information
as compared to more detailed labels (Geiger et al., 1991; Scott &
Worsley, 1994). These situations occurred because the consumers
usually had limited opportunity to process the label information and they
were less concerned when shopping for groceries largely due to low
understanding and knowledge in the use of nutritional label information
(Eagly & Chaiken, 1993 and Fiske & Neuberg, 1990). Customer usually
spent seconds rather than minutes when making a buying decision in a
supermarket (Hoyer 1984). This research finding was also supported by
the researches that were done by Higginson et al. in 2002 and Scott &
Worsley in 1997 where their findings showed that the consumers only
glanced at the nutrition information and did not process the information
further at the point of purchase. From the previous research findings we
could see the need of an effective front of the pack nutritional label that
can summarize all the information in a simple and easy to understand
format to influence the customer’s decision making process. As
mentioned before, the use of nutritional label could assist the customer
in making a healthier buying decision by comparing and selecting the
food products that are suitable for their diet.

The Role of Nutritional Label in Customer Buying Decision Process

Nutritional label can simplify the whole concept of healthy diet because it
helps the customers to keep track on the intake nutrients such as the
amount of fat and sugar, sodium and fiber, protein and carbohydrates. It
also assists consumers to make an informed judgment of a product's
overall value. (Asian Productivity Organization, 2002). Nowadays,
customer is concerned not only on the appearance of the products but
also on the nutritional information in the packaged food sold at retail
outlets (Din et al., 2011). By providing a nutritional label, it will assist the
customer in making healthier choice (Hwang & Lorenzen, 2008;
Drichoutis et al., 2006; Banterle & Cavaliere, 2009; Banterle &
Cavaliere, 2000 Cowburn, 2005; Zarkin & Anderson, 1992; Byrd-
Bredbenner et al., 2000 and Wade & Kennedy, 2010). In general, it has
been found that the use of nutritional label affects the purchasing
behavior mainly because the consumers want to avoid the adverse
nutrients in food products (Drichoutis et al., 2006). Previous studies had
proven the effect of using nutritional label consumption pattern toward a
certain product. Table 1 provides a summary of the studies:
From the reviews, it can be concluded that the use of nutritional label can
influence the consumption of food products. It can change the consumption
pattern of the consumer by shifting from choosing the unhealthy food to a
healthier food.
 The Need of Future Research
According to the Census in 2010, the total population of Malaysia is 28.3
million, compared to 23.2 million in 2000. This gives the average annual
population growth rate of 2.0 % for the period 2000-2010. The largest
component of population in Malaysia belongs to the age group of 25 to 64
years old (Malaysia Statistic Department, 2010). This age group was
believed to suffer diseases that were mainly food related particularly due to
the unhealthy diet intake (Stanton, 2011). One of the main reasons of why
this could happen was because of the ignorance on the importance of food
nutritional label amongst the Malaysian people. The future researcher could
propose a study regarding the issue whether the use of nutritional label can
influence the healthier food choice among the consumers. In 2005, AC
Nelsen had conducted a research in 38 countries from Europe, Asia
Pacific, North America, Latin America and South Africa. The study had
made enquiries to consumers regarding their understanding on food label;
when they check labels and what they check for as they shop for their food
products. The findings from the research showed that Malaysia was ranked
8th (29%) in the top 10 countries where users used nutritional label and
claimed to “always” check the food label before making purchase. Among
the Asian Pacific region, Malaysia is lagging far behind Thailand (41%) and
India (32%) in term of customers who always checked the nutritional label
during the purchase a food product. According to the same research also,
Malaysian consumers were on the highest ranking to check the nutritional
information on the food package when they were about to buy the food
product for the first time, with the score of 52% as compared to other
consumers especially in other Asia Pacific countries. Malaysian consumers
were also in second place after Singapore in relation to checking the
nutritional information on the label with a score of 37%. From here we can
see that the use of nutritional labeling is still poor among Malaysian people,
because there are evidences that they only care to use nutritional label
when they are buying the food product for the first time. In 2010, a research
regarding the level of understanding for four different types of nutritional
information formats (current nutritional information format, Guideline Daily
Amount (GDA), Multiple Traffic Light (MTL) and combination of Guideline
Daily Amount (GDA) and Multiple Traffic Light (MTL)) was done by Fatimah
et al., (2010). The study was conducted in Malaysia. Respondents of the
research were the women consumers in hypermarkets. The results showed
that the level of understanding of the current Nutrition Information Panel
(NIP) format was 58.2% (‘good’ and ‘very good’), which meant more than
half of the respondents could extract the nutritional information. However,
most of the respondents (68.1%) preferred the current NIP format to be
revised due to difficulty in understanding (43.1%), and nutritional
information that was perceived to be insufficient (23.3%) and over
simplified (21.6%) (Fatimah et al. 2010). According to Hawks in 2004, the
studies regarding the nutritional label especially in Asian countries were
lacking because most of the ASEAN countries were still new in the
implementation of food labeling regulation. In Malaysia alone, there was a
scarcity in study regarding the use of nutritional label (Dr Norzaidi Mohd
Daud et. al., 2011). The need of future research regarding the type of
nutritional label format that can influence the customer prefer using it is
highly needed because the finding can reveal which types of nutritional
label formats would produce effects to the customer. Furthermore, future
study can be done in the area of the most understandable nutritional label
among the Malaysian consumers. Moreover, the majority of the
respondents found in most studies in Malaysia were formed by university
students (Marjan et al., 1999; Nurliyana et al., 2011 and Norazmir et al.,
2012). A few studies also found only focused on single type of respondent
such as woman (Fatimah et al., 2010), small medium enterprise consumer
(Norzaidi Mohd Daud et. al., 2011), Chinese elderly (Yassin & Low, 1995)
and consumers who have experience in dining at full service restaurant
(Din et al., 2011). Future research regarding different types of respondents
is needed to see whether the different in demographic characteristic can
influence the use of nutritional label.
 Questionnaire

Nearly all surveyed consumers look for healthy options when shopping – at
least some of the time. This behavior is more common among younger,
highly educated consumers and those with children in the household.

Finding healthy food is only moderately easy for most consumers. Those
who are older highly educated and without children find this easier than
others.
 .

Overall, taste is the primary consideration when making a food purchase,

followed by price. The healthy symbol ranks third following these two
primary factors.

Consumer are somewhat more trusting of health – focused organization

then the government agencies, and much less trusting of food companies
in terms of statements made on food packaging.
Over half of the consumer surveyed (62%) are the least somewhat familiar
with the AHA Heart-check symbol. Younger consumers, those wiry a diet-
related condition and those with children are more familiar than other.

Abo
ut one in three consumers would choose a food with the Heart-Check
symbol over one without it; only one in four says it would have no impact.
The symbol is more influential for Gen X’ers, those with a diet-related
condition and those with children.
 Conclusion

Defining what is meant by “the use of nutritional label” has been a multi-
dimensional issue. This review indicates the questions guiding these
definitions - at least from the previous researchers’ standpoints. Besides,
this review also indicates the role of nutritional label in influencing the
healthier food choice. Furthermore this paper review also discusses
regarding the issue that can encourage the future researchers to develop
their researches in this area for the purpose of generating a new
knowledge.