Os ácidos graxos (AGs) trans foram largamente utilizados pela indústria de alimentos. Entretanto, seu consumo tem sido associado a problemas de saúde, principalmente ao aumento do risco para doenças coronarianas. No Brasil, desde 2006, o conteúdo de gorduras trans obrigatoriamente precisa ser informado nos rótulos dos alimentos industrializados. Aparentemente, isso fez surgir diversos produtos que declaram não conter gorduras trans e que tradicionalmente os continham em grandes concentrações. Dessa forma, o objetivo desse trabalho foi avaliar a oferta atual desses alimentos. Para tanto, a proporção de alimentos que declaravam conter 0g de gordura trans foi avaliada, verificando variações conforme a localização do estabelecimento de venda dentro da cidade de São Paulo. Também foi realizada a comparação da composição declarada e preço dos alimentos que declaram conter 0g de AGs trans com os demais. Além disso, foram analisados alguns produtos para verificar se a informação com relação ao conteúdo de AG é confiável e se está em conformidade com a legislação. A pesquisa foi realizada nas categorias biscoito doce simples, biscoito recheado, wafer, cream cracker e biscoito de polvilho através de pesquisa em supermercados. A quantificação dos AG nas amostras foi realizada por cromatografia gasosa e os resultados foram comparados com as informações contidas nos rótulos. Dos 498 diferentes produtos encontrados nos supermercados visitados, 68,9 por cento foram de alimentos que informavam não conter gorduras trans. Não foram observadas diferenças na oferta entre as regiões da cidade, entretanto, os produtos que informavam não conter gorduras trans possuem um preço mais elevado que os demais (p<0,001). Nove produtos foram analisados e a quantidade média de gordura trans por porção encontrada foi de 0,18 (±0,29). Dentre os produtos analisados, dois deles não poderiam declarar não conter gordura trans, pois continham mais do que 0,2 g por porção, considerando-se a variação permitida pela legislação de ±20 por cento. Os resultados sugerem que a obrigatoriedade em informar a quantidade de gordura trans nos rótulos proporcionou uma oferta ampla e bem distribuída de alimentos afirmam não conter esse tipo de gordura, no entanto, tais alimentos são menos acessíveis por possuírem um preço mais elevado. Além disso, com nem sempre as informações disponíveis nos rótulos são confiáveis, existe a necessidade de maior fiscalização por parte do poder público / Trans fatty acids (FA) were extensively used by food industry. However, the consumption of this type of FA has been associated with health problems, especially with increased risk for heart diseases. Since July, 2006, Brazilian regulation has imposed that industrialized food labels must express trans fat content. This apparently contributed to several products known for having large amounts of trans fat which now declare does not contain trans fat. Thus, the purpose of this study is to examine the supply of food products that claim to be trans fat-free, checking possible variations according to the sales spots, and comparing their composition and price to those of other food products in order to verify if such claims are reliable and comply with the law. The supply of the following products was evaluated supermarkets of Sao Paulo: sweet biscuit, sandwich biscuit, wafer, cream cracker and tapioca flour biscuit. The comparison between the products was based on the information on the labels. The quantification of trans FA in some of these foods was carried by gas chromatography and the results were compared with the information from labels. Were found 498 different products in the six supermarkets visited and 68.9 per cent of them were products that declare the absence of trans FA. There were no differences in terms of supply among regions of the city. However, the products that claim to be trans fat-free had a higher price than the others in all categories (p <0.001). No increase in the amount of saturated fat was found. In the nine products analyzed by gas chromatography the average amount of trans fat per serving was 0.18 (±0.29). Two of the products tested should not claim to be trans fat-free because they contained more than 0.2 g per serving, taking into account the acceptable variation of ±20 per cent. The results suggest that the mandatory declaration of trans fat content on labels led to a wide and well distributed supply of products that declare do not contain this kind of fat. However, these products are less accessible because they are more expensive. Furthermore, available information on the labels is not always reliable, which indicates the need to supervise such information

All human societies process their food extensively by thermal and non-thermal means. This feature distinguishes us from other species, and may even be compulsory given that humans are biologically committed to an energy-rich diet that is easy to chew and digest. Yet the energetic consequences of food processing remain largely unknown. This dissertation tests the fundamental hypothesis that thermal and non-thermal processing lead to biologically relevant increases in energy gain from protein-rich meat and starch-rich tubers, two major caloric resources for modern and ancestral humans that present divergent structural and macronutrient profiles. The energetic consequences of food processing are evaluated using three indices of energy gain, each of which account for costs not currently captured by conventional biochemical assessments of dietary energy value. Chapter 2 investigates the effects of cooking and pounding on net energy gain as indexed by changes in body mass, controlling for differences in food intake and activity level. Chapter 3 examines the effect of cooking and pounding on diet-induced thermogenesis, the metabolic cost of food digestion. Chapter 4 considers the effort required to engage in food processing, arguing that the advantageous ratio of benefit to cost has likely had important effects on human life history. By each of these definitions of energy gain, food processing is shown to have substantial energetic significance. Overall, energetic gains due to thermal processing exceeded those of non-thermal processing, consistent with recent proposals that the adoption of cooking had a particularly important influence on human biology. Gains due to food processing were observed in both meat and tuber substrates, supporting a transformative role for habitual food processing in the evolution and maintenance of the human energy budget. / Human Evolutionary Biology

Master of Science / Department of Food Science / Delores H. Chambers / Background: The US Food and Drug Administration proposed various updates to the nutrition fact panel, which included change to font, type size, addition of nutrients, and declaring absolute values. The rational was the new panel will provide consumers with more accurate and clear information, which may result in better food choices. Objective: This study examines whether participants perception of nutrient information and/or sensory properties will change based on proposed nutrition panel display format. Design: An online questionnaire was developed, and participants were randomized and selected to view the current nutrition label or the proposed nutrition label. The questionnaire was divided into three parts; (1) demographic information, (2) questions related to specific items of interest on the nutrition panel, (3) responses to questions after viewing each of five different food labels. Subjects/Setting: US food shoppers over 18 years of age who read food labels (n=1221) completed the online questionnaire. Statistical Analysis: Descriptive statistics were used for the analysis of participants demographic information. A Chi-square test were applied to test for significant differences between the current and proposed nutrition panels. Results: The study reveals that the top items of interest and importance viewed on both the proposed and current nutrition panel were similar. More than 30 percent of participants selected added sugar, sugar, and sodium, may affect sensory characteristic. The nutrition panels showed distinct differences in descriptive attributes across the five food categories, and significant differences between the current and proposed labels included “too sweet,” “nutritious,” “healthy,” “nutrient dense,” “balanced nutrition” and “artificial”. Conclusion: Consumers’ perceptions are impacted with the proposed nutrition panel. This study emphasized that consumers may be unclear about the labeling of added sugar. Government agencies, industry and those who impact health care will need to provide additional education to make sure consumers are clear about the labeling of added sugar.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Agricultural Economics / Ted C. Schroeder / Contingent valuation (CV), choice experiment (CE) and experimental auction (EA) or the combinations of the three methods are often used by researchers to elicit consumer willingness to pay for food attributes (food label). The main concern about these approaches is that different quality attributes of food are assumed independent. The problem of the independence assumption of a food attribute is that one attribute can signal information about another attribute or could be a proxy of overall product quality. In addition, in surveys consumers tend to be forced to focus on the limited attribute information that are presented by researchers, whereas in the real world, consumers have various sources of food quality information. The limited attributes provided in a survey may lead respondents to allocate their budgets to those limited attributes rather than allocate their budgets to a larger number of product attributes to truly reveal their preferences. The main objective of this study is to reveal the marginal impacts of additional food quality attributes on consumer WTP for food labels. Surveys containing a series of online CEs were collected to investigate the effects of additional beef steak attributes on consumer WTP in two different US markets. Both surveys included the same four questionnaires. Two questionnaires test the effect of additional attributes when no cue attributes are provided to the respondents, while the other two questionnaires test the effect of additional attributes when cue attributes are also presented. Every questionnaire contains two CEs, with the second CE having one more attribute than the first. Random parameters logit models are estimated for each CE in the four questionnaires with survey results from both samples, resulting in 16 sets of estimations altogether. The models with the different survey samples reveal consistent results regarding changes in WTP with more attributes added to the CEs. Consumer WTP for the most important attributes in the CE decreases when the number of attributes increases from three to four, while the WTP for the most important attributes increases when the number of attribute increase from four to five. The changes in the WTP for attributes depend on their relationships with the newly added attributes to the CEs and the number of attributes in CEs.

This study examined the association between level of physical activity and changes in dietary behaviors of 3,945 employees after a 10-week work-site physical activity program. Fifty-seven percent of the participants met the CDC/ACSM standard for physical activity sufficient for a health benefit. Physical activity was not significantly related to increased fruit and vegetable consumption, decreased dietary fat and calorie intake, and participants acquiring new nutrition skills. Physical activity was negatively associated with increased food label awareness. Participants who exercised sufficient for a health benefit were less likely to increase their food label awareness. Physical activity and dietary behaviors are generally not associated. Interventions to improve these behaviors should be behavior-specific.

The National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (PL 114-216) will require nearly all foods sold in the U.S. to bear a statement disclosing whether they contain genetically modified (GM) material. Past studies suggest the presence of such a statement could have profound effects on consumers; however, research comparing consumer response towards different GM-disclosure statements is scarce. PL 114-216 states that GM foods shall not be considered more or less safe than their non-bioengineered counterparts, nevertheless it would benefit regulators and food manufacturers to be aware of the possible effects such disclosures might have on consumers. In a nationwide survey, multiple disclosure statements with varying degrees of public familiarity were compared to evaluate consumer perceptions and attitudes associated with each statement. Average consumer knowledge level of GM processes was also measured. The statements were then paired with actual food items to determine whether specific product categories influenced consumer responses. A select few of these statements and foods were included in a taste panel, allowing researchers to analyze if disclosure statements affected a consumer's sensorial experience. Results suggested that consumers were most favorable towards statements indicating the absence of GM-material, however they also responded less negatively towards new disclosure statements that do not have negative connotations. Additionally, consumers may react differently depending on the food accompanying a particular disclosure, although the taste panel data found no evidence that statements affected actual eating experience. Importantly, data from both surveys and taste panel suggested a disclosure statement may affect consumer willingness to buy a product.

研究目的主要是根據參與有機事業的觀點更進一步了解台灣有機領域的狀況。 訪問七位於北台灣的有機領域的參與者進行非正式訪談:有機農戶、店家、有機商品認證機構回答相關有機領域的問題和消費者問卷調查。研究結果顯示獨立有機農戶所面臨一些挑戰和台灣糧食民主機制下運作的潛力—獨立有機農戶處理大部分財團的競爭和有機標誌混淆消費者的狀況下。由於真正問題並非在食物的品質本身於是焦點可轉向對於有機農戶或其他獨立生產機構有利的狀況。最後，本研究將提供一些建議給未來的研究以及提供目前問題的可能解決方法。 / The purpose of this study is to further the understanding of the state of the organic food industry in Taiwan with special consideration given to the perspectives of those participating in it. Seven participants in the organic foods industry in Northern Taiwan were selected for informal interviews. Farmers, store owners, and an organic food certification authority answered questions about the organic food industry, and consumers were surveyed as well. The findings uncovered several challenges that independent organic farmers face, and that the rate of Food Democracy in Taiwan is operating below its potential, as independent farmers deal with competition from dominant corporations, while the organic labeling system confuses consumers. Since the problem is not with the quality of the food, focus can be shifted toward ensuring a level playing field for farmers with smaller independent operations. Finally, this study gives several suggestions for avenues of future research and offers possible solutions to the problems uncovered.

Die vorliegende Dissertation setzt sich damit auseinander, wie das Zusammenspiel von essensbezogener Umwelt und Kognition Ernährungsentscheidungen beeinflusst. Im ersten Manuskript, “When Diets Last: Lower Cognitive Complexity Increases Diet Adherence” wird die Bedeutung der kognitiven Komplexität von Ernährungsregeln für das Einhalten einer Diät untersucht. Können Diäten scheitern, weil sie aus kognitiver Perspektive zu komplex sind, z.B. weil sich Diäthaltende nicht alle wichtigen Informationen merken oder verarbeiten können? 1136 Diäthaltende nahmen an einer längsschnittlichen Onlinestudie teil. Vorangegangenes Diätverhalten, Selbstwirksamkeit, Planung und wahrgenommene Regelschwierigkeit erhöhten das Risiko, die Diät vorzeitig aufzugeben, wobei Selbstwirksamkeit und wahrgenommene Regelschwierigkeit die einflussreichsten Faktoren waren. Im zweiten Manuskript „Meat Label Design: Effects on Stage Progression, Risk Perception, and Product Evaluation” wird der Einfluss gesundheitsrelevanter Information auf Labeln für Produktbewertung und Intention, Tierhaltung und Inhaltsstoffe von Lebensmitteln in die Kaufentscheidung einzubeziehen, untersucht. Es wurde betrachtet, wie Inhalt und Kontext (separate versus conjoint Darbietung) der Labelinformation die Bewertung von Fleischprodukten beeinflusst. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich bei einer conjoint im Gegensatz zur separaten Darbietung die Bewertung der Produkte umkehrt. Darüber hinaus hatten Personen, die zuvor nicht motiviert waren gesundheitsrelevante Aspekte in ihr Einkaufsverhalten einzubeziehen, nach Betrachten der Label eine höhere Intention diese zu berücksichtigen. Im dritten Manuskript, „Predicting Children’s Meal Preferences: How Much Do Parents Know?“, wurden Präferenzvorhersagen bezüglich der Essensentscheidungen Anderer erforscht. Es wurde untersucht, wie gut und mit Hilfe welcher Information Eltern die Mittagessenpräferenzen ihrer Kinder vorhersagen. Die Vorhersagegenauigkeit der Eltern entsprach der Stabilität der Essenspräferenzen ihrer Kinder, d.h. dass die Eltern so genau waren, wie möglich. Die Ergebnisse suggerieren, dass Eltern vor allem spezifisches Wissen über die Präferenzen ihrer Kinder und Projektion ihrer eigenen Vorlieben für die Vorhersagen nutzten. / This dissertation focuses on food-related decision making, in particular, how food related environments and cognition interact to determine people’s food choices. The first manuscript, “When Diets Last: Lower Cognitive Complexity Increases Diet Adherence,” investigates the role of the cognitive complexity in diet adherence. Can weight loss diets fail because they are too complicated from a cognitive point of view, meaning that dieters are not able to recall or process the diet rules? The impact of excessive cognitive demands on diet adherence were investigated with 1,136 dieters in a longitudinal online-questionnaire. We measured perceived rule complexity controlling for other factors known to influence adherence. Previous diet behavior, self-efficacy, planning and perceived rule complexity predicted an increased risk to quit the diet prematurely, with self-efficacy and diet complexity being the strongest factors. The second manuscript, “Meat Label Design: Effects on Stage Progression, Risk Perception, and Product Evaluation,” presents two studies which tested the impact of health-related meat labels on product evaluation and intention. Specifically, the studies examined how informational content and the context (separate vs. conjoint evaluation) in which labels are assessed influence the evaluation of meat products. The results showed that conjoint assessment of labels can lead to contrary product rankings compared to separate evaluations. Moreover, the results suggest that being exposed to food labels containing specific health-relevant information can increase motivation to consider health aspects in those consumers without previous intention to do so. The third manuscript, “Predicting Children’s Meal Preferences: How Much Do Parents Know?” investigated prediction behavior concerning other people’s food choices. In particular, it asked how accurately and what cues parents use to predict their children’s meal choices. Overall, parents’ prediction accuracy matched the stability of children’s meal choices, implying that accuracy was as high as can be expected. The results suggest parents were able to obtain high predictive accuracy by using specific knowledge about their child’s likes and projecting their own preferences.

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