Almost all (98%) consumers care about what’s in the products they buy, according to a new report from Label Insight. However, they’re also confused when it comes to ingredients in food.
The study found that 83% of consumers are confused at least some of the time. In particular, the words “healthy,” “natural,” and “clean” are not well understood.
This makes people uncomfortable. Nearly half (45%) are concerned about eating food that contains ingredients they don’t understand, and 35% simply don’t buy the products.
It also erodes trust — 60% of people said they trusted a brand less when they couldn’t understand the ingredients.
What can food manufacturers do?
Well, first they can clean up their labels to include only non-confusing ingredients. The survey found that 81% of consumers are more likely to buy products with ingredients they recognize, 64% would switch to another product for more understandable ingredients, and 54% are willing to pay more for such products.
Companies can also provide technology to better educate their customers. More than 8 in 10 respondents said they would trust manufacturers more if they provided more information about their ingredients. And 95% expressed interest in using technology, like a mobile app, to look up said information while they were in the store.
Sources: Label Insight, Don’t be Confused About Ingredient Confusion
Label Insight, 2017 Label Insight Ingredient Confusion Study
