How Online Grocery Stores Support Consumer Nutrition Information Needs

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Science
• E-commerce
• Consumer Health Informatics

Background:

• Increasing online grocery shopping necessitates accessible nutrition information for consumers.
• Evaluating the digital provision of mandatory nutrition labeling on e-commerce platforms is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the availability of nutrition-related data and features on major online grocery websites.
• To determine if Nutrition Facts panels and ingredient statements are present for required food items.
• To identify the availability of nutrition-based search filtering and sorting functionalities.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 12 leading US-based online grocery websites.
• Verification of Nutrition Facts panel and ingredient statement availability for 26 specific food items.
• Examination of search result filtering and sorting options based on nutrition attributes.

Main Results:

• Nutrition Facts panel and ingredient statement data were available for 85% of foods where legally required.
• The majority of assessed websites provided options to filter search results by nutrition-related attributes.
• None of the online grocery stores offered the ability to sort search results by nutrition attributes.

Conclusions:

• Online grocery platforms incorporate various nutrition-related features, enhancing consumer access to information.
• Despite progress, universal availability of mandatory Nutrition Facts and ingredient statements remains a challenge.
• The absence of nutrition-based sorting limits advanced consumer-driven dietary analysis and selection.