Year: 2018 | Month: March | Volume 7 | Issue 1
Degree of use of food labels by consumers in Trinidad and Tobago
Abstract:
Food labels are not only an essential component of a comprehensive public health and nutrition strategy, but also marketing. Food labels help consumers to make informed decisions about what they chose to consume. Food labels help consumers to make informed decisions about what they chose to consume. This study was conducted among the population of twin-island Caribbean nation, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago with a sample of 320. The objectives of the study are: to examine the extent to which consumers use various components of the food label; and to study the influence of socio-demographic and health related factors on the degree of use of nutrition labels. The study found that the aggregate degree of importance attributed to food labels far outweighed their actual usage. Of the explanatory variables included in the model to determine the influence on the degree of usage of food labels, six explanatory variables, viz., (i) diabetes; (ii) allergies; (iii) gender-male; (iv) level of schooling; (v) fast food consumption and (vi) fiber consumption had significant impact on the use of food label information. Although Trinidadians may have an appreciation for the information provided on food labels, they lack the incentive to actually incorporate it in their daily lives which could be achieved through proper health education campaigns.
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