Can health trump taste? Implicit and explicit attitudes toward sugar-reduction claims and their differentiated impact on purchase intention for cereals

This study investigates the implicit and explicit health–taste tradeoffs that consumers make in response to sugar-reduction claims on chocolate cereals. We collect implicit measures through an Implicit Association Test, explicit perceptions of health and taste properties, and statements regarding product liking and purchase intention through a questionnaire. Based on a path analysis, we assess the relative strength of the indirect effects of sugar-reduction claims mediated by health and taste perceptions, as well as the direct effects on purchase intention. The results indicate that sugar-reduction claims decrease taste perceptions, increase health perceptions, and have only minor negative effects on product liking, but increase purchase intentions. Most participants show an implicit “unhealthy = tasty” intuition, which can be offset by moderate to high health consciousness. The implications for marketing and policymakers are twofold. First, our study shows that sugar-reduction claims are effective in addressing the original target group of health-conscious consumers. Second, our results suggest that the health–taste tradeoff is not prohibitively detrimental to purchase intentions among less health-conscious consumers. Potential instruments to increase the market share in this segment are discussed [EconLit Citations: I18, D12, D83].