AWARENESS OF FOOD LABELLING INFORMATION AND ITS USE IN PURCHASING OF PRE-PACKAGED FOOD PRODUCTS AMONG CONSUMERS: A CASE STUDY OF THE ATWIMA NWABIAGYA DISTRICT

ABSTRACT

The practice of reading and using food labelling information in purchasing pre-packaged food is very important.  Unfortunately, in most communities in Ghana, people are not used to reading pre-packaged food labels. The study aimed at creating awareness of prepackaged food labelling among consumers. The objectives of the study were to determine awareness level of consumers of pre-packaged food labelling information; identify the effect of the food labelling information in purchasing pre-packaged foods; and assess the challenges consumers encounter in reading and understanding food labels on pre-packaged foods. The study adopted the mixed-method design. Simple random sampling technique was used to sample 276 consumers. Data was gathered using questionnaire and interviews. The study revealed that most of the consumers were aware of food labelling information on pre-packaged foods by reading the list of ingredients on food packages 94.7%, reading the expiration dates on food packages 95.7%. Reading and looking out for the country of origin on food package 72.8%, reading the food storage and handling instructions on food packages 85.0%, and reading and checking the organic seal/certification on food packages 80.1%. The study further found that price, manufacturing date, and appearance of the prepackaged food had effect on the purchasing decisions of consumers.  It appeared from the study that level of education of consumers, lack of understanding of food labels, uncertainty about accuracy of information and lack of interest in the information on the food labels affected consumers’ ability to read the food labels. Based on this, conclusions were made that food labelling is very important because it informs consumers on the contents of the food they are purchasing and it was recommended that manufacturers of food items should ensure that the lists of ingredients or contents of the food are written on the food labels. Also, consumers should check the manufacturing date (best before, expiry date) of food items before they buy them.