Comparison of front-of-pack labels to help German consumers understand the nutritional quality of food products

Front-of-Package labels (FoPLs) provide simplified nutritional information to consumers to help them make healthier food choices. Investigating consumers' understanding of this information is of major importance. This study compared consumers' objective understanding of five FoPLs (Health Star Rating System [HSR], Multiple Traffic Lights [MTL], Nutri-Score, Reference Intakes [RIs], warning symbol). In 2018, 1,000 German participants were enrolled in an online survey and asked to rank three sets of products according to their nutritional quality, first in the absence of any labelling, and then with an FoPL displayed on-pack (randomized). Change in ability to correctly rank products was assessed using ordinal logistic regression. For all food categories, the Nutri-Score performed best, followed by the MTL, warning Symbol, HSR and RIs. The Nutri-Score emerged as the most effective FoPL in conveying information on the nutritional quality of foods for German consumers.