“No Child or Adult Would Ever Probably Choose to Have 16 Teaspoons of Sugar”: A Preliminary Study of Parents’ Responses to Sugary Drink Warning Label Options

Abstract

Front-of-pack (FoP) warning labels are a viable policy option with the potential to inform consumer choice and assist in reducing sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption as part of a multi-faceted approach. This study explored parents’ perceptions and understanding of a range of SSB warning labels. Focus groups (n = 12) with 82 parents of school-aged children were conducted, stratified according to education level, sex and location. Health effects, exercise equivalents, sugar content (teaspoons in text and pictograms, “high in”) and energy content labels were shown. Through thematic analysis we identified three themes. Theme 1 related to perceptions of effectiveness of labels, underpinned by four subthemes: perceptions of labels as credible, informative and useful, personally relevant and having the potential to change be haviour. Theme 2 related to participants finding opportunities for self-exemption (e.g., physically active) and message rejection (e.g., misinterpretation). Theme 3 encompassed the potential negative consequences of some labels (e.g., body image concerns). The text teaspoons label was perceived most favourably across all themes, with minimal negative issues raised. These results provide in-depth insight into potential responses to labelling as a policy intervention, providing important guidance for the development of labels to ensure optimal message content and framing for future testing and subsequent implementation.