Public perceptions of front-of-package warning label during policy design and implementation in Uruguay: A content...

Nutritional warnings are one of several front-of-package labelling schemes implemented worldwide. Their adoption has often been complex and contested, particularly due to trade concerns and strong industry opposition. In this context, citizen support is considered critical. Understanding how people express views, motivations, and trust in institutions through everyday social talk can inform strategies to bridge opinion groups.

To explore narratives about nutritional warnings on Twitter throughout the Uruguayan policy process.

Tweets from Uruguay between May 2018 and April 2021 were retrieved using Synthesio®. Content analysis followed a deductive-inductive approach. First, references to the four elements of the Narrative Policy Framework (Setting, Characters, Plot, Moral) were identified. Then, inductive coding was used to generate categories within each element.

A total of 1013 tweets were retrieved, of which 752 related to the Uruguayan warning label policy. Most tweets were posted by regular citizens without explicit links to key stakeholders. Tweets commonly included narrative elements, particularly a character and a moral or policy solution. As the policy process advanced, narrative elements shifted: regulatory changes prompted higher engagement, stronger polarization, and increasingly divergent arguments.

Findings highlight the value of examining public discourse on social media during the policy process. Understanding how nutritional warning labels are framed by citizens can help researchers and policymakers develop advocacy and communication strategies to shape opinion and support policy implementation in other countries.