Carpe FDA: The Nutrition Facts Label Update Is an Opportunity to Gain a Competitive Brand Advantage

Mandate? Opportunity?

The automotive emissions mandate came about because Californians wanted to breathe cleaner air. Similarly, the Nutrition Facts label reflects a growing consumer desire to eat more consciously for better health, making informed decisions based on clear, trustworthy labeling. Understood in this way, the new FDA rules aren’t an imposition on brands so much as a renewed fulfillment for consumers.

Many brands have understood this trend for years and have already been adapting their labeling and communications to better address consumer needs—well in advance of regulatory mandates. Product recipes are also changing to make sure that a clear label is also a clean label. High profile examples include the disclosure of GMO ingredients by ConAgra Foods and Campbell’s; and the pledges by Nestlé, General Mills, Kellogg’s, and others to eliminate artificial colors and flavorings.

It’s not only about incremental change and adaptation. Over the past decade, growing consumer demands for simplicity, sustainability and wholesome nutrition have led to the creation of entirely new categories, have radically shaped established ones, and have even helped smaller natural and organic brands take significant market share from larger, more established brands.

Smart companies see the Nutrition Label update as a powerful signal and a rare market opportunity to create meaningful changes that consumers want to see, driving significant new growth. The entire industry must make labeling changes. The big winners will be brands that see this as a strategic opportunity, not just an imposed burden.Schawk Best serving sizes

Seizing The Advantage

Here are seven ideas to help transform the packaging redesign CPCs are required to make into new opportunities for a brand to connect with consumers who care.

  • Look to Europe: Brands in the European Union are leading the way, as EU Regulation 1169/2011 requires more transparent disclosure of ingredients and nutritional facts. The EU regulation goes beyond the Nutrition Facts label update, affecting front of package claims that could be the next target of regulation in the U.S. Learn from the brands that are most successful in turning new labeling mandates into new market opportunities
  • Know what consumers expect from your brand: What roles do your category and brand play in the life of your consumers? These dynamics may be changing rapidly. Does your brand provide basic nourishment or indulgence? How involved is your shopper in reading labels? Is this consistent across all channels? How do consumers think of your competition in terms of health and wellness? Are “better for you” options growing in your category? How does your brand deliver on the nutritional expectations of older and younger consumers? Understanding consumer attitudes within your category can help you claim a position of strength against your competition and adjacent product categories
  • Consider the implications of larger serving sizes: Serving sizes are increasing to reflect actual consumption habits rather than the manufacturer’s suggested serving. For example, a serving of ice cream is increasing from 1/2 cup to 2/3 cup. Think about how consumers are likely to respond. What current claims need to change? What new claims can be enabled? For example, can a low fat claim be replaced by a high protein claim? How can you educate retailers, shoppers and consumers through on shelf, digital, social and other channels? How do you compare with competitors? Remember that small differences between products will be amplified with increased serving sizes. Think through what claims you can make and how to position your brand as a champion of transparency
  • Identify opportunities to lead: Use the Nutrition Facts label update as an opening for your brand to take bold, decisive action ahead of the competition. This could mean reformulating an existing product to better align with consumer expectations. It could mean repackaging your existing product to promote more responsible consumption. New product innovation could also deliver better for you mixes, with fewer ingredients, tapping into consumer reactions to the heightened visibility of nutritional information
  • Understand your true design equities and assets: The new Nutrition Facts label is in many ways bigger, bolder and more eye catching, yet it retains familiar design elements. To incorporate it effectively, you may need to redesign and reposition packaging artwork. What elements are required? What can you afford to change, move or remove? Now is the time to make these decisions—not later while in the process of building mechanical art. This is a smart time to revisit and republish your brand guidelines so these decisions are clear and well known in advance
  • Touch packaging only once: Make every touch count! With all the artwork going through your internal supply chain—plus your agencies, printers and the rest—efficiency is critical. Plan to update the Nutrition Facts label in tandem with any other changes you’ll be making. Conversely, consider what other opportunities you have to improve package design while touching the Nutrition Facts label. The important thing is to avoid making multiple artwork changes to the same SKU within the regulatory compliance window. The same principle applies to secondary packaging, POS materials and other brand touchpoints
  • Assemble the right cross functional team: Coordinating all the components and stakeholders requires an informed, agile, experienced team. Assemble the right people now and begin planning to conduct an impact audit, define processes, assign task owners, establish governance, estimate budget requirements and formalize success metrics

Are You Ready?

All of your competitors are wrestling with the same regulatory requirements. Not all of them realize that consumers—not bureaucrats— are the real driving force behind the change. Consumers want transparent labeling to help them make healthy choices.

The Nutrition Label update is a minimum requirement. You have to change your packaging by July 26, 2018 in order to comply—but you have an opportunity to do so much more. Are you ready?

Headshot Carol BestAbout the Author: As VP client engagement at SGK, Carol Best has 15 years of expertise in strategy and client management guiding the development and stewardship of some of the world’s most well known brands. Carol’s ability to articulate a clear, insightful strategy has helped leading marketers strengthen their agency partnerships, brand portfolios, improve brand performance and empower brand management support through a disciplined program. Prior to joining SGK, Carol worked with Interbrand (New York and Cincinnati), where she helped build a strategy department to service Procter & Gamble and was part of the firm’s innovation team. She holds a B.S. in economics and marketing from The Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Learn more at www.sgkinc.com and www.schawk.com/label-central.