A third of consumers check oil labels for sustainability claims, according to the results of a 2023 study by global agribusiness giant Cargill, reported by Food Business News.
Published by Deloitte consultancy, in New York, Cargill’s Fatitudes survey – now in its 11th edition - reflected consumers’ changing attitudes toward fats in the diet, the 28 December report said.
Of those shoppers checking the ingredient list in 2023, 61% said they were trying to avoid certain fats and oils, while 31% said they were looking for specific fats and oils.
In the survey, consumers were asked about which fats and oils they believed were the healthiest and about what they looked for on package labels. Claims linked to health, such as “no saturated fat”, generally scored higher than other types of claims, but consumers were also influenced by other factors, the report said.
“In our latest survey, a third of consumers said they check labels for sustainability claims around fats and oils, and two in five said they were more likely to purchase products that carried those claims, which is up 17% points since 2013,” Jamie Mavec, senior marketing manager with Cargill, Minneapolis, was quoted as saying.
“In 2023, we also found 45% of consumers said they were more likely to purchase products labelled as non-GM [genetically modified]. A similar number, 41%, said they were more likely to purchase products labelled as organic.”
“Olive oil consistently ranks at the top. In 2023, 66% of consumers said they believe it is a healthy oil. A relative newcomer to our list, avocado oil, ranked second. It was perceived as a healthy oil by 59% of respondents.”
The survey showed that half of all consumers in the USA monitored fats and oils in food purchases.
“Most of these consumers are motivated by health considerations, such as reducing the risk of heart disease, lowering cholesterol or losing weight,” Mavec added.
