Gustafson Christopher R, Zeballos Eliana
Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 314A Filley Hall, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA.
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Economic Division, Washington, D.C., USA.
Prev Med Rep. 2018 Oct 3;12:186-190. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2018.09.013. eCollection 2018 Dec.
Providing calorie labeling is a widely used strategy to combat obesity. However, there is little evidence that the availability of calorie information at food-away-from-home establishments has an effect on food choices. Listing calorie information for each ingredient, though, may allow customers to avoid high-calorie items that add little to their enjoyment. Data from a natural experiment were used to compare total calories ordered before and after the provision of per-ingredient versus for build-your-own sandwiches, and per-sandwich for pre-defined sandwiches, at a supermarket sandwich counter. Sandwich order slips from a Lincoln, Neb. supermarket were collected from December 15, 2016 to February 4, 2018. In June 2017, calorie information was introduced. A total of 1134 build-your-own orders and 559 pre-defined orders were collected. Calories ordered before and after the provision of calorie information were examined for build-your-own and pre-defined sandwiches using two-sample -tests. Orders post-calorie information were split into three periods to examine whether responses to information changed over time. Ingredients ordered were also examined before and after information was provided. Customers decrease calories ordered by 7.8% for build-your-own sandwiches when per-ingredient calorie information is introduced. There is no significant change in calories ordered for pre-defined sandwiches. Calorie reduction appears to result from substitution away from some higher calorie items, e.g., mayonnaise, towards lower calorie ingredients, like mustard. Despite low calorie content, customers did not increase the number of vegetables ordered. Finally, there is no attenuation of the effect of calorie information over time.
提供卡路里标签是一种广泛用于对抗肥胖的策略。然而，几乎没有证据表明在外出就餐场所提供卡路里信息会对食物选择产生影响。不过，列出每种食材的卡路里信息可能会让顾客避免选择那些对其享受程度提升不大的高热量食品。来自一项自然实验的数据被用于比较在超市三明治柜台提供每种食材的卡路里信息前后，顾客定制三明治所点的总卡路里数，以及预定三明治每份的卡路里数。从内布拉斯加州林肯市的一家超市收集了2016年12月15日至2018年2月4日期间的三明治订单小票。2017年6月引入了卡路里信息。总共收集了1134份定制订单和559份预定订单。使用双样本t检验检查了提供卡路里信息前后定制三明治和预定三明治所点的卡路里数。将提供卡路里信息后的订单分为三个时期，以检查对信息的反应是否随时间变化。还检查了提供信息前后所点的食材。当引入每种食材的卡路里信息时，顾客定制三明治所点的卡路里数减少了7.8%。预定三明治所点的卡路里数没有显著变化。卡路里减少似乎是由于从一些高热量食材（如蛋黄酱）转向了低热量食材（如芥末）。尽管蔬菜热量低，但顾客并没有增加所点蔬菜的数量。最后，卡路里信息的效果并没有随时间减弱。
