Young Consumer’s Awareness on Food Packet Labeling in Rural Tamil Nadu – A Convergent Mixed Methods Study

Background: Food labeling is one medium by which consumers can acquire knowledge about the food they consider buying. This type of information is becoming increasingly important in a food market where direct contact with personnel over the counter is declining. Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the level of awareness on food packet labeling and to explore the contributing factors of food packet label awareness among college students in Villupuram district, rural Tamil Nadu. Methodology: The study was carried out among 113 college students studying in Government Arts and Science College, Thiruvennainallur village, located in Villupuram district. A convergent mixed methods study design was used. A structured self-administered questionnaire was given to the students who participated in the National Nutrition Week awareness program. The questionnaire included variables such as checking for date of manufacturing, date of packaging, best-before date, storage conditions, lot number/code number/batch number, containing FSSAI code, and checking list of ingredients. In-depth interview was conducted among eight students who volunteered to explore the reasons for not checking food packet labels and solutions to improve the visibility of food package labeling. Categorical variables were summarized using percentages. Manual content analysis was done for in-depth interviews. Results: It was found that more than 90% of the study participants check for food packet labels, best-before dates, and date of packaging. However, more than half of the participants did not check for lot/code/batch number and storage conditions. The most common reason for not checking food labels was package-related factors such as font size very small, hidden, and hard to find and trust on brand and seller. The most common solution to improve the visibility of food labeling was increasing the font size and highlighting the important information. Conclusions: Our study highlights the level of awareness about food labels among youngsters and the solutions to improve the visibility of food labels. Need-based interventions have to be done to ensure the food safety of the consumers.