Nova rotulagem nutricional frontal de alimentos: análise de rótulos e impacto na percepção do consumidor e da indústria de alimentos

Abstract

The fast-paced routine of the population has increased the consumption of convenient foods that are easy to prepare or ready to eat, most of which are processed or ultra-processed products. These foods are designed to be consumed in any circumstance that requires speed, encouraging the act of eating without paying attention to what is being ingested. Such factors promote the unrestrained consumption of foods with considerable amounts of additives that, in the long term, cause health damage. As a result, the emergence of nutritional labelling and the changes that regulations have undergone over the years aim to clarify label information, such as composition and nutrients. In this context, the objective of this study was to evaluate the adequacy of labels following the implementation of the new front-of-package labelling, as well as to understand the opinion and main difficulties faced by the food industry, and the influence of the use of front-of-package labelling on eating habits of consumers. During the period of implementing front-of-package nutritional labelling, a label analysis survey was conducted by food group in supermarkets in Fortaleza, verifying that 70% of the food groups presented errors, mainly in the location of the front-of-package nutritional labelling on the main panel. Additionally, forms created using Google Forms were applied to the industry and consumers in general. Within the research context, the industry admitted a negative perception regarding the changes, stating that they brought financial losses. On the other hand, the graphs generated from consumer responses showed that most respondents have the habit of reading food labels but do not fully understand the information; moreover, they noticed the presence of the magnifying glass and declared their willingness to improve their eating habits.