Nutrition Label Formatting: Customer Perceptions and Behaviors

In response to increasing U.S. obesity rates, legislators have begun mandating that chain restaurants make nutrition information available. While other studies have addressed various aspects of nutrition information labeling in restaurants, there has been little research into the efficacy of the various forms of delivery of restaurant nutrition information. The results of this study indicate that menu nutrition formatting has little impact on customer behavior. This study also found that when nutrition information was influential in the decision making process, consumers chose food items averaging 30% less calories. Consumers who did not change their food selection based on nutrition information still indicated they found the information valuable and appreciated its availability.