Testing Non-Nutrition Menu Labels on Food Selections: A Nationally Representative Online Survey Experiment in Two Fast-Food Restaurants
试验速览
- 阶段
- 不适用
- 状态
- 已完成
- 入组人数
- 7,000
- 试验地点
- 1
- 主要终点
- Modified Nutrient Profile Index score
研究概览
简要总结
The primary objective of this study is to test the relative effects of environmental harm menu label designs on the healthfulness of consumers' fast-food meal choices. Participants will complete hypothetical online meal ordering tasks using a survey which emulates the online menus of two types of fast-food chain restaurants: a burger restaurant and a sandwich restaurant. Participants will be randomized the view both menus, presented in random order, with one of five labeling conditions applied. Secondary objectives include energy and nutrient content of meals ordered, prices of meals ordered, and, through a post-order survey, noticeability of the labels and perceptions of labels between the conditions.
详细描述
This online randomized trial will test the relative effects of environmental harm menu label designs on the healthfulness of consumers' fast-food meal choices and perceptions of menu items. The survey research firm Verasight will recruit a nationally representative sample of 7,000 adults aged 18 years and older who speak English and reside in the United States from their survey panel.
Participants will complete a between-subjects online experiment in which the participants will be randomized to view two fast-food online ordering menus (in randomized order) with one of five labeling schemes applied: (1) a QR code on all items (control); (2) a low environmental harm label on all low harm items (3) a high environmental harm label on high harm items; (4) traffic light labels on all items by level of environmental harm; and (5) environmental grade labels on all items by level of environmental harm. Each restaurant menu will be presented across 2 pages; page 1 will display all main items, and page 2 will display categories for side, dessert, and drink items. Labels will only appear alongside main menu items and will be assigned using thresholds for environmental harm set a priori which factor in estimated cropland, pastureland, and water usage associated with each food item. Each hypothetical order must include between 1 and 4 items. Participants will be required to select 1 main item and, optionally, up to 3 additional items (drinks, sides, desserts). After completing the meal ordering task, participants will be prompted to answer questions about whether they noticed the correct label for their condition, whether they used the label when making their meal selections, perceptions of the labeled menu items and the labeling condition which the participants were randomized to view. Additionally, participants will be asked about their level of food security, participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), support of governmental policies and practices regarding food and nutrition, use of GLP-1 agonists, personal values, dietary patterns, and other demographic information.
The primary outcome will be the healthfulness of meal orders selected from the online menu, indicated by a modified Nutrient Profile Index meal score for all food items ordered. Secondary outcomes will include total calories ordered, whether a sugar-sweetened beverage was ordered, and perceived message effectiveness of the environmental harm labels.
Analyses will be conducted overall (summing the meal selections across both restaurants) and stratified by restaurant.
研究设计
- 研究类型
- Interventional
- 分配方式
- Randomized
- 干预模型
- Parallel
- 主要目的
- Prevention
- 盲法
- None
入排标准
- 年龄范围
- 18 Years 至 —（Adult, Older Adult）
- 性别
- All
- 接受健康志愿者
- 是
入选标准
- •18 years of age or older
- •Member of the Verasight Panel
- •Residing in the United States
排除标准
- •<18 years of age
- •Not residing in the United States
- •Completed the survey in less than one-third of the median completion duration of all participants
- •Respondents with high refusal rates (skipped or refused more than 50% of questions)
- •Respondents who 'straight-line' all question grids with 6 or more items, where responses are not internally consistent
研究组 & 干预措施
Control (QR) Labels
A black label featuring a QR code and white text that reads "SCAN HERE" will be placed beneath all main menu items on two restaurant menus. Explanatory text describing the label's meaning will be displayed at the top of the menu.
干预措施: Control (QR) Labels (Behavioral)
Low Environmental Harm Labels
A green icon-plus-text label that reads "LOW ENVIRONMENTAL HARM" in white text against a green background will be placed on two restaurant menus beneath main menu items that are less harmful to the environment compared to unlabeled main menu items, based on use of cropland, pastureland, and water. Labels will include a white globe icon directly preceding the label text. Explanatory text describing the label's meaning will be displayed at the top of the menu.
干预措施: Low Environmental Harm Labels (Behavioral)
High Environmental Harm Labels
A red icon-plus-text label that reads "HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL HARM" in white text against a red background will be placed on two restaurant menus beneath main menu items that are more harmful to the environment compared to unlabeled main menu items, based on use of cropland, pastureland, and water. Labels will include a white globe icon directly preceding the label text. Explanatory text describing the label's meaning will be displayed at the top of the menu.
干预措施: High Environmental Harm Labels (Behavioral)
Environmental Harm Traffic Light Labels
Traffic Light labels will be placed on two restaurant menus beneath all main menu items. Using estimated cropland, pastureland, and water use, each item will be assigned one of three icon-plus-text labels within this scheme: low-, medium-, or high-impact label. Each will read, "HIGH ENVIRONMENTAL HARM" within a red label, "MED. ENVIRONMENTAL HARM" in a yellow label, and "LOW ENVIRONMENTAL HARM" in a green label. Text for all labels will be written in white, and a white globe icon will precede the text. Explanatory text describing the meaning of the labels will be displayed at the top of the menu.
干预措施: Environmental Harm Traffic Light Labels (Behavioral)
Environmental Grade Labels
Environmental Grade labels will be placed on two restaurant menus beneath all main menu items, using estimated cropland, pastureland, and water use to assign one of five icon-plus-text labels which indicate a specific environmental grade (A, B, C, D, and F). All labels are solid black with a white globe icon followed by white text which reads "ENVIRONMENTAL GRADE". On the left side of each label, a grade is displayed, capitalized and in a white font within a solid-colored box. The color of the box corresponds with each letter grade: A = dark green, B = light green, C = yellow, D = orange, F = red. Beneath the letter grade, a gradient of all possible grades is displayed horizontally in smaller font, each grade atop a small solid box in the respective grade color. Explanatory text describing the meaning of the labels will be displayed at the top of the menu.
干预措施: Environmental Grade Labels (Behavioral)
结局指标
主要结局
Modified Nutrient Profile Index score
时间窗: Immediately upon viewing the menus
The primary outcome measure will be the healthfulness of the fast-food meal selections, measured with a modified Nutrient Profile Index (NPI) score. NPI scores are based on the United Kingdom (UK) Ofcom Nutrient Profiling Model, which is used to score individual foods in the UK to determine which ones can be marketed to children. The NPI is a 0 to 100-point score for foods; a score of \>=64 is considered healthy. Higher score is better.
次要结局
- Nutrient Profile Index score(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Number of Participants who Notice labels (Attention to label)(Immediately after viewing the menus)
- Number of Participants who Recall Label Purpose(Immediately after viewing the menus)
- Number of Participants Who Use of label(Immediately after viewing the menus)
- Participant's Perceived label believability(Immediately after viewing the menu excerpt and label image)
- Perception that label grabbed attention(Immediately after viewing the menu excerpt and label image)
- Perceived message effectiveness (PME) as assessed by the University of North Carolina (UNC) PME scale(Immediately after viewing the menu excerpt and label image)
- Total price of meal order(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Beef item selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total energy selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total saturated fat selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total sugar selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total protein selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total fiber selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Total sodium selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)
- Sugar-sweetened beverage selected(Immediately upon viewing the menus)