THESE DAYS, MORE THAI CONSUMERS ARE CHECKING FOOD LABELS

THAILAND LEADS ASIA PACIFIC WITH MOST PEOPLE WORRYING ABOUT CALORIES, FAT AND CARBOHYDRATES Three in four (75%) Thai online consumers say they take notice of packaged goods labels containing nutritional information compared to two years ago and about half of consumers (49%) claim to mostly understand what they’re reading – according to findings from an Internet survey on Food Labeling and Nutrition conducted in 51 countries, released today by The Nielsen Company. According to the Nielsen survey, Thailand tops the Asia Pacific region with 75 percent of consumers say they take notice of the nutritional information on packaging more now than two years ago, higher than the global average (66%). ( Table 1) “Our survey findings clearly demonstrate the degree to which health and diet have taken a pivotal role in our lifestyles,” said Chantira Luesakul, Managing Director of The Nielsen Company (Thailand) Limited. “The need for clear and educational labeling has become one of the most debated and controversial topics in recent few years and the pressure is on the food industry to take greater responsibility for educating people about what they’re eating.” When they were asked when they would check the nutritional information on the package. More than half of Thai consumers (61%) said they checked nutritional information when they’re thinking of buying a product for the first time. 41 percent said they checked when buying certain types of food, 20 percent said they checked when they have time, 14 percent said they checked the nutrition information when trying to lose weight and 11 percent said they checked food labels when they are buying for their children. Interestingly, only two out of ten said they never checked the nutritional labels on the package. (Table 2) “The development of supermarkets and the modern trade in emerging markets in the last 10 years has brought a plethora of new packaged products to consumers. As such, nutritional information on packaging serves to educate shoppers on what they are buying and eating,” said Chantira. Consumers interested in the nutritional content of the foods they buy, and food manufacturers’ effort to provide more information is one thing. Understanding the labels is something else altogether. In Asia Pacific, India leads the region in understanding food labeling with 59 percent of Indian consumers claim to mostly understand food labels followed closely by Australia, Newzealand (same 58%), Philippines and Thailand ( same 49%). In Thailand, about half of them (49%) say they mostly understand the nutritional information on food packaging higher than global average (44%) and Asia Pacific (29%) And another half of Thais (51%) shows partial understanding of food labels. Calories Fat, and Sugar : the three big “look-outs” for Thai consumers In Thailand, it’s the Calories content that drives more than half of all consumers to check the labels on food packaging.66 percent say they check food labels for calories, followed by fat (64%) sugar (60%) and preservatives (58%). According to our last survey in three years ago, preservatives in food were the biggest reason for checking nutritional labels. However we found a shift in consumers’ concern from preservatives to Calories this round. ( Table 3) Thailand also leads the region with most people worrying about Calories, Fat and Carbohydrates. “In the past five years there has been unprecedented coverage of health, diet and lifestyle issues in every kind of media. Never before have consumers been so obsessed with healthy living, and savvy marketers have realized that adding an element of “healthiness” to any product is fundamental to sales success,” said Chantira Despite their geographic distance, the Nielsen survey revealed that French and Japanese consumers share strikingly similar attitudes towards nutritional information and labeling. Japan (18%) and France (16%) top global rankings for claiming they never check nutritional information on packaged goods and both also featured in the top 10 global rankings for not understanding food labeling at all. The Japanese take their dismissal of nutritional information and labeling a step further – Japan also topped global rankings for never checking fat, trans fat, protein, sugar and carbohydrates. Chantira continues. “Interestingly, these two nations rank at the bottom of global obesity charts and both countries share a food culture based predominantly on fresh and natural products with far less emphasis on processed and fast foods.” About The Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey The Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey, conducted by Nielsen Customized Research, was conducted in April 2008 among 28,253 internet users in 51 markets from Europe, Asia Pacific, North America and the Middle East. The largest half-yearly survey of its kind, the Nielsen Global Online Consumer Confidence and Opinion Survey provides insight into current confidence levels, spending habits/intentions and the major concerns of consumers across the globe. The Nielsen Consumer Confidence Index is developed based on consumers’ confidence in the job market, status of their personal finances and readiness to spend. About The Nielsen Company The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), online intelligence (NetRatings and BuzzMetrics), mobile measurement, trade shows and business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek). The privately held company is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in New York, USA. For more information, please visit, . CONTACT: For Immediate Release Nitjawan Khooha (Nikki) Email:[email protected] Tel:02-674-6000 ext.5131 or 089-7727707 Click for photo release at www.thaipr.net

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