Insights from consumers' exposure to environmental nutrition information on a dashboard for improving sustainable healthy food choices

Abstract

Over the last decade, there has been a growing demand for tools to support sustainable healthy lifestyles, including food choices. Through a survey, this study examined the influence of environmental nutrition information conveyed with aids such as nudges and traffic light labels through a Dashboard for Improving Sustainable Healthy (DISH v1.0) food choices on consumer purchase intentions. DISH is an application that enables end-users to envisage and compare the potential impacts of their choices before purchasing. In the early stage of the technological development of DISH, the environmental nutrition information of two fast-food menus, plant-based and animal-based burgers, was tested among 112 respondents from a university campus. The results suggested that with an environmental nutrition score, less cognitive processing was required to make sustainable healthy choices. Among the 90.2% of respondents with a predisposed purchase intention for animal-based burgers, 56.9% reported a purchasing intent for plant-based burgers. More than 83% attributed their decision to the environmental nutrition information provided on DISH. 64.3% of respondents rated DISH as 4 stars or 5 stars, suggesting the perceived usefulness of the application. A statistical investigation of the results indicated that features of the DISH application, nudges, and awareness considerably influenced sustainable choices (sig<0.001). The results support digital innovations as essential drivers for reinforcing environmental nutrition messages and stimulating subtle dietary changes. These preliminary results have served as a precursor for ongoing studies on other university campuses and corporate institutions testing the long-term impact of DISH v2.0 in stimulating dietary change.