Climate Labels for Restaurant Menus Pilot

Measured as a dichotomous variable (yes/no) indicating whether participants' hypothetical meal orders include a high climate impact menu item.

Cumulative total kilograms of carbon equivalent (kgCO2e) per kilogram of food for all meal items.

NPI scores are based on the UK Ofcom Nutrient Profiling Model, which is used to score individual foods in the U.K. to determine which ones can be marketed to children. The NPI generates a 0 to100-point score for foods and beverages where scores >=64 are considered healthy. NPI scores are based on points awarded from nutrients to encourage (e.g., percent fruits and vegetables, grams of fiber and protein) and nutrients of concern (e.g., sodium, sugar) per 100 grams. For this study, we will generate a modified NPI score to evaluate the healthfulness of full meals comprised of multiple food items. This measure will be determined by calculating the weighted mean NPI score of all food items selected per meal, with each item's NPI score weighted by its proportionate contribution of mass in grams to the total mass of the meal.

Reference: Rayner, M., Scarborough, P., Boxer, A., & Stockley, L. (2005). Nutrient profiles: development of final model. London: Food Standards Agency.

The total number of calories in participants' hypothetical meal orders, calculated as the sum of calories across all menu items selected. Higher values indicate more calories selected.

The total grams of saturated fat in participants' hypothetical meal orders, calculated as the sum of grams of saturated fat across all menu items selected. Higher values indicate more saturated fat selected.

The total milligrams of sodium in participants' hypothetical meal orders, calculated as the sum of milligrams of sodium across all menu items selected. Higher values indicate more sodium selected.

Measured as a dichotomous variable (yes/no) indicating whether participants noticed and can correctly recall the climate, environmental, or control label with the question: "Did you notice any labels (other than calories) next to or below the menu items?." With response options: "Yes, a climate label" (or "Yes, an environmental label" in the environmental cost condition), "Yes, a heart healthy label," "Yes, a vegan label," "Yes, an organic label," "Yes, a local label," "Yes, a QR code label," "No, I did not see a label," "Not sure."

There is no formal name for this measure. It was developed for this study.

Measured with a single item: "Imagine the city you live in is considering a policy that would add the label(s) shown below to relevant menu items in chain restaurants. Would you…?" With an image of the assigned label condition the participant was randomized to and the response options: "Strongly oppose this policy," "Somewhat oppose this policy," "No opinion," "Somewhat support this policy," "Strongly support this policy."

There is no formal name for this measure. It was developed for this study.

A single item adapted from the UNC-PME scale to measure how much the climate labels discouraged wanting to purchase an item that has a high climate impact with the question: "How much does this label discourage you from wanting to purchase an item that has a high climate impact?" With response options: "Not at all," "A little bit," "Somewhat," "Quite a bit," and "A great deal."

Reference: Baig, S. A., Noar, S. M., Gottfredson, N. C., Boynton, M. H., Ribisl, K. M., & Brewer, N. T. (2019). UNC perceived message effectiveness: validation of a brief scale. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 53(8), 732-742.