A new analysis of 10 grocery websites found that only 35% of retailers provided nutrition facts and other important information online. Senior study author Sean Cash from Tufts University noted that while the government requires this information to be on packaging, it has not translated well to online spaces. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic leading to an increase in online grocery shopping, over 80% of Americans have purchased groceries online at some point in the past three years according to the US Department of Agriculture.
The US Food and Drug Administration requires that packaged foods display a comprehensive label, whether they are sold online or in stores. However, online grocery retailers are not mandated to share this information on their websites. The research team, which includes members from NYU School of Global Public Health and the Food is Medicine Institute, examined product details from Amazon, FreshDirect, Hy-Vee, Safeway, ShopRite (via Instacart), Kroger, Meijer, Publix, Stop & Shop, and Walmart. The sample included 60 items like Oreo cookies and Kraft American cheese slices.
Multiple online retailers were found to lack necessary nutrition facts, ingredient lists, and allergen information for commonly purchased items. Instead, marketing claims about the products were more prominent. Cash highlighted the difficulty in finding essential information compared to marketing materials when researching food items. The study was published in the journal Public Health Nutrition, and the researchers are hopeful that the FDA will take regulatory action as they have issued a Request for Information to learn more about food labeling through online platforms.
Cash’s team has recommended that shoppers visit the food manufacturer’s website for accurate and detailed nutrition information and ingredient lists as they are more likely to be found there. They pointed out that placing the burden on consumers to search for this information is not ideal. Cash mentioned that possible solutions could involve Congress passing new laws requiring retailers to make food labeling accessible online or developing a public database of nutrition and allergen information for packaged foods. The team is hopeful that regulatory action will be taken to ensure that consumers have access to the necessary information when purchasing groceries online.
