Are nutrition claims an adequate tool for public health?
2009
Caillavet, France | Nichèle, Veronique | Soler, Louis Georges
Objectives. Whether the role of nutrition claim regulations are efficient is an important public health issue. We analyzed the extent to which nutrition claims reach at-risk consumers. Methods. We used purchase data on breakfast foods in France. We first derived product substitutions from a demand system. Second, we simulated scenarios based on several combinations of prices and nutritional quality of light dairy products. The simulations aimed to assess the impact on nutrient content. Results. Nutrition claims reach at-risk people, but their consumption is limited by prices and household income constraints. Under assumptions of price and quality modifications, we show that claim regulations that are not too stringent seem to favor a healthy diet more than very demanding claim constraints. This induces a large quality gap between standard and claimed products. Conclusions. A smaller increase in the nutritional quality of the food can be more efficient for public health than a large improvement. A quality improvement should be achieved at a price level at which such products are affordable to a large share of the population.
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