Comparisons of Nutri-Score and NutrInform Battery on consumer preferences, objective understanding, and food choices among Portuguese consumers

Front-of-pack nutrition labels (FoPLs) are a cost-effective measure to inform consumers about the nutritional values of foods and to help them make healthier food choices at the point of purchase. This study compared the preference and performance - objective understanding and food choices - of Portuguese consumers for two FoPLs: Nutri-Score and NutrInform Battery. An experimental study was conducted in 2022 on a representative sample of 1014 Portuguese adults (mean age = 45.1 ± 13.8 years; 49% women). Participants were randomly allocated to either the Nutri-Score or the NutrInform Battery group and asked to complete an online questionnaire testing their objective understanding of the label and the effect on purchase intentions for three food categories as well as perceived helpfulness and perception of the FoPL. In terms of participants' ability to identify the most nutritionally favourable foods, Nutri-Score outperformed NutrInform Battery in all categories, with the highest performance observed for the identification of the three foods of higher nutritional value within the breakfast product category (OR = 27.8 [19.4-39.9], P <. 0001). Overall, with Nutri-Score, participants were more likely to intend to purchase more nutritionally favourable products than with NutrInform Battery (OR ranging from 2.01 [1.50-2.68] for breakfast cereals to 14.6 [10.2-20.9] for added fats, P <. 0001). In terms of preference, Nutri-Score was more appreciated, and perceived as easier to use, more reliable, and more informative than NutrInform Battery. The Nutri-Score appeared to be a more appreciated and effective tool than NutrInform Battery for helping Portuguese consumers to choose foods with a better nutritional composition.