Added sugar on the label: shoppers pick less sweet yoghurt and cookies
A Penn State study shows that since added sugar has had to appear on US packaging, demand for particularly sugary products has fallen.
Graphic: TERRA WORLD NEWS (own graphic based on the sources listed)
When the packaging states how much sugar has been added, shoppers reach less often for particularly sweet products. That is the conclusion of agricultural economists at Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) in a study in the journal Agribusiness, presented by the university on 16 October. In the US, large manufacturers have had to list added sugar in the nutrition facts table since 2020, smaller ones since 2021.
The researchers analysed NielsenIQ scanner data from 2015 to 2020 covering 3,528 markets – for 312 yoghurt products from seven brands and 430 cookie products from 15 brands. After the new label was introduced, shoppers were less likely to choose products with a lot of added sugar. According to the researchers' model, sugar consumption without the label would have been about 4 percent higher for yoghurt and about 11 percent higher for cookies.
"The updated label made that distinction visible for the first time," said co-author Yizao Liu. According to the calculations, a tax on added sugar alone would reduce its consumption about as much as a broader tax on all sugar. The study does not contain dietary advice for individuals.
This article is for information only and is not legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Figures as of the date stated.