Less is More (Natural): The Effect of Ingredient Quantity Framing on Consumer Preferences and Naturalness Perceptions

Abstract

Despite the ubiquity of ingredient quantity information in the marketplace, prior literature has yet to examine whether ingredient quantity shapes consumer choice. We present and test a novel framework that charts when, how, and why this pervasive ingredient quantity information distorts consumers’ food decisions. Across eight experiments, including two large field studies, consumers are more interested in food products framed as containing few (vs. many) ingredients, even when the same ingredient list is displayed across products. We find that consumers believe that products with few ingredients have undergone less processing and are therefore more natural, which leads consumers to prefer food products containing few ingredients. We also build an overarching theoretical framework that illuminates when ingredient quantity information can have opposing effects on consumer behavior: When consumers’ common goal to consume natural products is overshadowed by other consumption goals (e.g., the goal to seek indulgent or unique products), the effect of ingredient quantity information on preferences reverses. This research sheds light on consumers’ lay beliefs about naturalness, uncovers how the ingredient quantity information that pervades the marketplace biases consumers’ daily food product decisions, and provides easily implementable guidance for marketers seeking to increase consumers’ likelihood of purchasing their products.

Keywords: naturalness, ingredients, lay beliefs, healthiness, product labeling, product decisions