Recent decades have seen a concomitant increase in the prevalence of diet related non-communicable diseases and revolutionary developments in digital technology. The long-term shift from bricks-and-mortar to online in the grocery sector has accelerated through the pandemic, during which a new model of grocery retail characterised by App-based purchasing and rapid delivery has arisen. 
 With almost two-thirds of adults in the UK overweight or obese, a multitude of interventions have been proposed and nutrition labelling has been demonstrated to be effective in influencing consumer behaviour towards healthier food choices1,2. Current UK regulations for prepacked foods, including online purchases, require retailers to display a back of pack (BOP) nutrition declaration whilst a colour-coded (traffic light) front of pack (FOP) label is voluntary. The BOP information must be available to the consumer “before the purchase is concluded”. Previous research has found inconsistencies in the presentation of nutrition labels in online supermarkets in the UK, whilst recent international studies have found nutrition information to be frequently missing from online listings3,4. The aim of this research was to assess the presence, visibility, and formatting of nutrition labelling in the online listings of traditional and emerging UK grocery retailers.
Four traditional and 4 emerging online grocery retailers were selected and 216 listings from 9 popular food categories were assessed between February and March 2022. Where available, 1 supermarket branded, and 1 leading-brand private-label product was assessed from each store. App listings were accessed using mobile devices and website listings were accessed using the same browser. Listings were assessed for the presence, visibility and format of FOP and BOP nutrition labels. Statistical comparisons were performed using Fisher’s exact and McNemar tests.
The presence of FOP and BOP labels for each item within a store was identical between the App and website listings and there was no statistically significant difference between the visibility of the FOP labels between app and website (p=0.180). The presence of FOP (p<0.001) and BOP labels (p<0.001) was significantly higher in listings of traditional stores (FOP =67%, BOP=96%) than emerging stores (FOP =0%, BOP=18%).
With an increasing emphasis on convenience in the online grocery sector, the importance of prominent nutrition labels has arguably never been greater, yet there is substantial variation between retailers with respect to the inclusion and visibility of voluntary FOP nutrition labels. More concerningly, in a high number of listings, there is a conspicuous absence of both voluntary FOP and mandatory BOP nutrition labels especially amongst emerging retailers including those who are members of the British Retail Consortium.
1. 	Stones C. Online food nutrition labelling in the UK: how consistent are supermarkets in their presentation of nutrition labels online? Public Health Nutr. 2016;19(12):2175-2184. doi:10.1017/S1368980015003110
2. 	Chio AI, Davies T, Wu JHY, Louie JCY. Prevalence of missing nutrition label and ingredients list information on e-shops of major chain supermarkets in Hong Kong. Nutr Bull. 2021;46(4):468-475. doi:10.1111/NBU.12530



On demand but not on display. A comparative analysis of nutrition labelling in online grocery retailers.

The Nutrition Society Summer Conference 2022 is hosted in collaboration between Sheffield Hallam University, University of Sheffield and Sheffield City Council. It will be the first in-person Summer Conference since the pandemic, held at the Sheffield Hallam University city centre campus.

Sustainability is high on the agenda for individuals and for society as a whole, recent meetings such as COP 26 have highlighted the urgency of addressing climate change, of which food systems are a key factor.

The overarching theme of this conference highlights sustainability- sustainability is a large, diverse and contemporary issue consisting of environmental, societal and health perspectives which will be addressed from varying angles. 

This meeting will consider how to build ethical food systems, tackle inequalities and sustain health and wellbeing for future generations.

The Organising Committee have considered local food provision and will offer you a chance to explore Sheffield and its local produce.