ABSTRACT
Costello et al, (2002) examined the effect of variation in label colour, information source, GM content and probabilistic Vs definite wording on self reported measures of hazard perception and purchase intention for a food product. They found a strong inverse relationship between hazard perception and purchase intention, as hazard perception increased, purchase intention decreased. Using analysis of variance, a main effect of colour and content was found for measures of purchase intention and hazard perception. Red labels, as opposed to blue, green and white labels increased hazard perception and reduced purchase intention, as did labels indicating GM as opposed to non-GM content. In addition a main effect of wording was found on hazard perception whereby labels with the wording ‘contains GM’ as opposed to ‘may contain GM’ increased hazard perception. A main effect of information source on purchase intention was also found where labels attributed to a ‘Consumer Association’ as opposed to the ‘Department of Health’ or ‘Manufacturer’ increased purchase intention. These results suggest that public perceptions of specific GM food products are subject to variation dependant on the way in which information indicating GM content is presented. This research suggests that the findings from warning label research generalise across to GM food labels, specifically the effect of colour, information source, and wording.
