Food label fatigue

Consumer survey shows Iowans find branding claims misleading.

BY KELLY VISSER

Savvy shoppers avoid stale food. The same can be said for a majority of branding claims.

Eight in 10 Iowans find food labels misleading, according to the Iowa Food & Family Project’s (Iowa FFP) annual Consumer Pulse Survey conducted among households’ primary food purchasers.

This finding, along with 55 percent reporting attributes like “organic” or “all natural” have little to no influence on their purchasing decisions, shows Iowa grocery shoppers may be growing numb to the product packaging in their cart.

“Shoppers are becoming increasingly indifferent to the flashy label claims food marketers are using, especially those that are rooted in misinformation,” says Aaron Putze, APR, Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) communications and external relations director. “Twentytwo percent said they don’t seek out information on food labels at all.”

Food labels and packaging offer many claims, which can be confusing and misleading for consumers.

Now in its seventh year, the annual survey takes a pulse of Iowans’ food purchasing habits, including label influence and attitudes toward farming. Year-over-year findings drive ISA’s consumer engagement strategy, including Iowa FFP’s programming and content development.

The November 2018 survey had 676 responses, made up of 295 Iowa FFP newsletter subscribers and 381 non-subscribers across the state. Respondents’ age groups, income levels, education levels and geographic regions closely follow the state’s population, resulting in a low margin of error of 3.79 percent.

Blue Compass, a digital marketing agency in West Des Moines, conducted the survey analysis from data collected through Research Now’s business-toconsumer panel.

Label lookout

According to the survey, three in four respondents seek information on food labels, but the intensity with which food labels influence purchase behavior wasn’t as evident as in previous years. Overall, nutrition and ingredients were the most influential parts of food labels with 24 percent of respondents selecting each as “extremely influential.”

In looking at specific label attributes, more than half of more of respondents say the following attributes have no effect on purchases:

— 50 percent reported “hormone-free” labels have no effect on purchase

— 53 percent reported “antibiotic-free” labels have no effect on purchase

— 53 percent reported “organic” labels have no effect on purchase

— 58 percent reported “non-GMO” labels have no effect on purchase

“The number of ‘organic’ or ‘non- GMO’ labels in grocery stores makes it seem that those are the only products consumers want,” says Shannon Latham, vice president of Latham Hi-Tech Seeds – one of Iowa FFP’s nearly 35 partner organizations.

“It’s interesting to see many of these labels aren’t resonating as strongly with Iowa consumers.”

Food quality is the most important factor to Iowans when they’re grocery shopping with 58 percent rating it as “most important.”

Quality was followed by price, nutritional value, ease of preparation, sustainability, where/ how it was grown and raised, and compliance with diet, respectively. Among these influencers, the price of food was the only factor to show an increase in “most important” ratings from 2017, up 4 percent.

From fridge to farm

To measure the thought that Iowans put into their grocery shopping, respondents are asked how strongly they agree with a series of statements. The survey found that more than half think about how their food was grown and raised, 65 percent reporting being knowledgeable about agriculture and 83 percent report being satisfied with Iowa agriculture.

For Randy Miller, ISA District 8 executive committee director from Lacona, the findings are encouraging. “So often we only hear the loudest, most negative voices,” Miller says.

“The reality is — when we share information about what farmers are doing and how they are doing it — perceptions are positive.”

Miller sees Iowa FFP as a valuable initiative that farmers can leverage to connect with consumers.

“As farmers, it’s up to us to get out and share our stories. It makes a difference in consumer attitudes. We need to tap into the Iowa FFP network to continue building two-way conversations between farmers and consumers.”

Iowa FFP subscribers were significantly more likely than nonsubscribers to be “very satisfied” with Iowa agriculture, 47 vs. 36 percent, respectively. The ag awareness initiative reaches nearly 120,000 followers each month through its newsletter, website and social media channels. This reach is roughly equivalent to the combined populations of Altoona, Cedar Falls and Dubuque.

The survey included a series of questions about farmer performance, asking if farmers are on the right or wrong track with water quality, caring what consumers think, building strong communities, animal housing, providing safe foods and biotechnology.

Overall, respondents feel farmers are on the right track with those issues measured. Nine out of 10 believe farmers are on track with building strong communities and providing safe foods.

Thirty percent of respondents feel farmers are on the wrong track with water quality, the highest percentage of wrong track responses. This response was consistent with 2017 survey results.

Fifty Iowa consumers tour northeast Iowa farms during Iowa FFP's Expedition Farm Country.

Joseph L. Murphy/Iowa Soybean Association

Impacts of the initiative

Overall, Iowa FFP subscribers were more likely than non-subscribers to be informed on food topics and show positive sentiments toward Iowa agriculture.

“It’s clear this initiative is having a positive impact on Iowans embracing – rather than fearing – modern agriculture,” says Latham, a longtime Iowa FFP partner.

Forty-four percent of Iowans reported being familiar with Iowa FFP, a 9 percent increase from 2016. Ten percent reported being “very familiar” in 2018, an 8 percent increase from 2016.

For additional survey highlights, visit iowafoodandfamily.com/news.

Contact Kelly Visser at kvisser@iasoybeans.com.