When you reach for that bottle of wine this Valentine’s Day, do you already know how healthy it’s? Many people have a too-rosy view of the beverage and are surprised when confronted with the facts about it on a nutrition label, based on a study my co-author Natalia Velikova and I recently published within the Journal of Consumer Marketing.
Our findings could have big implications for the wine industry, particularly as some groups within the U.S. are pushing for wine to have mandatory nutrition labels.
Right now, people often consider wine as a “virtue” reasonably than a “vice,” because of popular beliefs about its health advantages and news coverage of its antioxidant effects. But requiring nutrition labels, that are currently voluntary, could change those views.
In our experimental research, which included nearly 800 participants, we found that American consumers aren’t used to seeing nutrition information on wine labels, and most are surprised by what they read since they don’t associate wine with calories, carbohydrates and sugar. People who were prompted to read labels viewed wine as less healthy than they did beforehand, they usually were less prone to buy it.
We also found that individuals are more surprised by the sugar content of sweeter wines, corresponding to Moscato, than by the variety of calories. Sweet wines, specifically, may contain more sugar than consumers realize.
Why it matters
The European Union recently mandated nutrition labeling on winesometimes in the shape of QR codesand industry analysts expect the U.S. will eventually follow suit. The Treasury Department’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, which regulates wine production, has already agreed to issue some preliminary rules for mandatory ingredient labeling.
Nutrition labels don’t have to be bad news for the wine industry. Wine sales have recently declined amongst those 60 and younger, and greater transparency in labeling could help rekindle young consumers’ interest.
Millennial and Gen Z consumers may especially appreciate clearer labels, because it could help them view wine as less mysterious and more accessible. It might also allow them to suit an occasional glass of wine into their personal health goals. Younger consumers may also be more excited by eliminating as many highly processed ingredients as possible from their diets.
What’s more, there’s been a recent trend toward wine packaging including labels like “organic,” “biodynamic” and “sustainable,” which can appeal to consumers’ preferences for sustainability. These labels have less to do with nutrition than with manufacturers trying to look eco-friendly — but makers of natural wine would likely profit most from offering nutrition information to support their front-of-label claims.
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What other research is being done
German researchers have found that almost all consumers often overestimate calories in wine before viewing dietary labels, they usually don’t think the knowledge is beneficial. The researchers found that buyers often feel insecure and confused after reading wine ingredient information. Reviewing ingredient lists also made consumers less prone to view wine as a natural product.
On the manufacturer side, research shows that mandatory nutrition labeling would affect the wine industry in several ways — notably by increasing overhead costs related to compliance, laboratory analyses and more difficult labeling processes. This could disproportionately hurt smaller wineries with fewer resources.
What still isn’t known
We still don’t know who’s almost certainly to read and use nutrition labels on wine, but younger customers appear to be more interested in food labels generally. Millennials report they’re eating healthier and exercising more than previous generations.
And there’s still more to find out about how nutrition labels affect behavior. Studies have shown mixed results, but on the entire, labeling appears to make people cut their calorie consumption somewhat. Still, the U.S. put nutrition labels on foods within the Nineties, and that hasn’t stopped the obesity rate from rising.
