Objective Understanding of Nutritional Label
Conditions
Brief summary
A modified version of the Nutri-Score (Nutri-Score 2.0), containing an additional graphic mention when the product is ultra-processed, has been proposed. The investigators aim to study, in a randomised controlled trial design nested in the NutriNet-Santé cohort, the impact of this modified version on the objective understanding of foods' nutritional quality, and on the identification of UPFs as primary outcomes. They also aim to study as secondary outcomes the impact of this label on purchasing intentions and the product perceived as the healthiest.
Detailed description
Two arms will be enrolled. The control arm will not have access to any FOP Label (the current situation in Europe), and the experimental arm will have access to Nutri-Score 2.0. Participants of both arms wil be asked to rank food products of 3 categories (breakfast cereals, cookies, ready-to-eat meals) according to their nutrient profile, and to identify ultra-processed foods.
Interventions
OTHERFront-of-pack label NutriScore 2.0
Participants in the experimental arm can see, in case the product is ultra-processed, a black banner surrounding the Nutri-Score, with the word ultra-transformé, meaning ultra-processed, and no black banner otherwise. Participants in the control arm had no label at all. The intervention (the Nutri-Score 2.0) was added on the packaging on the products included in the 3 sets of images that participants recieved via the questionnaire.
Sponsors
University of Paris 13
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 99 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
Enrolled in the NutriNet-Santé cohort
Exclusion criteria
None
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Objective understanding the nutritional quality. | Between 30 minutes and 1 hour (the time needed to fill the questionnaire) | The answers of the participants on the corresponding questionnaire (via the NutriNet-Santé website) were expected to match the order according to which Nutri-Score ranks the 3 products (highest nutritional quality, second highest, third highest). In case of ex-æquos (i.e., two products having the same Nutri-Score), both were considered correct. Therefore, the number of correct answers for the nutritional dimension could range between 0 (no correct answers) to 9 (3 best products\*3 food categories, all correct answers). |
| Objective understanding the ultra-processing dimension. | Between 30 minutes and 1 hour (the time needed to fill the questionnaire) | Participants were expected to identify all UPFs on the corresponding questionnaire (via the NutriNet-Santé website). For each product, the answer was considered correct if an UPF was identified as such by the participant (the gold standard being the presence of the black banner of the Nutri-Score 2.0, corresponding to the NOVA 4 ultra-processed definition), and a non-UPF was identified as such. Therefore, the number of correct answers for the food processing dimension could range between 0 (no correct answers) and 22 (correct answer for all 22 products). |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Purchasing intentions | Between 30 minutes and 1 hour (the time needed to fill the questionnaire) | Assessed with the question (in the corresponding questionnaire via the NutriNet-Santé website) : Which of these products would you purchase more frequently?. This aimed to explore whether Nutri-Score 2.0 (the intervention) had an effect on the purchasing intentions. |
| Product perceived as the healthiest | Between 30 minutes and 1 hour (the time needed to fill the questionnaire) | Assessed with the question (in the corresponding questionnaire via the NutriNet-Santé website) : Which product seems the healthiest to you?. This aimed to explore whether Nutri-Score 2.0 (the intervention) had an effect on the product that the participants considered as the healthiest. |
Countries
France
Outcome results
None listed