When reduced fat increases preference. How fat reduction in nutrition tables and numeracy skills affect food choices

Zero-fat products may be good alternatives to regular-fat products for consumers who are watching their health. In a choice experiment, we investigated whether consumers were willing to consume zero-fat products on the basis of nutrition tables and whether numeracy skills affected this decision. We presented respondents with the same two products in three choice tasks, reducing the fat content at each choice. Product A always contained less fat than Product B. The participants could choose one of the two products or none. Most respondents favoured the lower-fat products over the higher-fat products. However, after a fat reduction to almost zero, significantly more respondents chose the fattier alternative than in the first choice. A fat reduction to zero further reduced the relative preference for the lower-fat product in favour of the fattier alternative. Many consumers thus seem unwilling to consume zero-fat products. Respondents lower in numeracy seemed to differentiate less between regular- and reduced-fat products than those higher in numeracy. We discuss the implications of these findings for food producers.