Assessing consumer preferences for labeling information of dry-cured serrano ham on a virtual supermarket in Spain

Encouraging healthy and personalized nutrition has become one of the EU strategic lines and, since 2015, the third sustainable developed objective promoted by the United Nations aims to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages. One approach to address this objective is to provide information to consumers through the labeling of food products. However, it has been scientifically proven that some food products provide an approximation of their nutrient content on the food packages, which might mislead consumers. Hence, this study examines consumers’ acceptance of precise nutrient labeling (nutritional facts and nutritional claims related to fat and salt content) on dry-cured ham (Jamón Serrano) in a virtual supermarket. The study was conducted in Zaragoza (Spain) on 161 consumers. In a virtual supermarket that mimics a real-life environment, participants were presented with a choice set of six alternatives and a no-buy option and were asked to choose their most preferred ham. The results indicate that Spanish consumers preferred dry-cured ham with a conventional nutrition label while the low salt content nutrition claim did not affect preferences.