Labeling impact

Effect of labelling food products with varying information about food irradiation and related benefits on consumer’s product acceptance 

Food irradiation technologies offer undeniable benefits in relation to food safety and quality, but consumers might hold suspicions or even adverse associations with irradiated foods. This presentation introduces results of two independent consumer studies in which information in varying formulations about food irradiation was presented to Finnish, German and Spanish consumers (n=1200 in total) in a form of packaging label of fresh cultivated blueberries. Results of the studies show that consumer acceptance is higher when no explicit irradiation information is delivered to consumers. In addition, adding some explanatory benefit to justify food irradiation increases consumer acceptance. Overall, both studies suggest that consumer acceptance of irradiated foods can be improved through careful introduction of food irradiation information on product labels.