Testing the influence of nutrient content claims and a health warning label on consumer perceptions of ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages: an online randomized experiment.

Aims: To investigate the influence of health-oriented nutrient content claims (NCC; e.g. 140 calories) and a health warning label (HWL) depicting cancer risks on consumer product perceptions of ready-to-drink (RTD) alcoholic beverages, including potential differences in subgroups.

Methods: An online within-participants experiment was conducted among alcohol consumers ages 18-64 in Canada (n = 4689). Participants viewed the front panel of RTD alcoholic beverage containers according to four label conditions: (1) NCC vs. no label, (2) NCC + HWL vs. no label, (3) HWL vs. no label, (4) no label vs. no label. When viewing each pair, participants were asked to select which product they: (a) are interested in trying, and (b) buy to reduce health risks. Responses were assessed using generalized estimating equation and logistic regression models within the overall sample and subgroups, including gender, age group, education, alcohol use, and body weight intentions.

Results: When asked to select the product to try and to reduce health risks, participants were more likely to select the product with NCC, compared to NCC + HWL or HWL. When NCC were present, women were more interested in trying the product and those trying to lose weight had higher odds of perceiving reduced health risks. No other characteristics were associated with label effects.

Conclusions: NCC on RTD alcohol products influenced product appeal and risk perceptions among consumers, particularly women and those trying to lose weight. Prohibiting NCC on alcohol packaging could be an effective policy strategy to prevent increased appeal and minimize consumer confusion about alcohol health risks.