EIT Food advises how to make personalized nutrition tools more appealing to consumers

12 Apr 2024 --- The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Food Consumer Observatory asserts that consumers need to become more invested in personalized nutrition for the field to become successful. Although most consumers are aware of personalized nutrition, concerns over data privacy, effectiveness and costs limit their use of available tools.

In its report titled “Personalized Nutrition — A Category Exploration of Personalized Nutrition Services,” the EIT Food Consumer Observatory suggests making these tools more accessible based on consumer insights. 

“To address skepticism over data and the use of consumer information, consumer trust needs to be won over by personalized nutrition companies and stakeholders,” Klaus Grunert, professor at Aarhus University, Denmark, and director of the EIT Food Consumer Observatory, tells Nutrition Insight.

“This means data privacy needs to be tightly and clearly regulated and that these processes must be communicated to consumers in a unified way. In the case of personalized nutrition, transparency will be the key for companies to get consumers on their side.” 

He adds that companies offering personalized nutrition tools should also acknowledge the skepticism of whether the products are a marketing ploy. For example, “providing more insight into the science in which personalized nutrition products are rooted to reassure consumers that these products can make a real difference to their lives.” 

Consumer skepticism  
The study included 91 participants of the Citizen Participation Forum, an online community on food and nutrition, who participated in a series of tasks such as discussions and polls. 

Grunert highlights that personalized nutrition is a relatively new tool for consumers; they have little experience with it, and some doubt its usefulness to their daily lives, health and nutrition. 

“Data privacy is the most dominant and pervasive barrier revealed in the EIT Food Consumer Observatory study. Most consumers in the study were concerned that their personal data would be used for marketing, but also who might one day have access to their data and what they could do with it. When it comes to personal information and health, some consumers don’t feel comfortable sharing their data with non-governmental bodies.”

Key consumer concerns include data privacy, effectiveness of tools, lack of contact with professionals and costs.“Another frequent concern consumers have over personalized nutrition is the fear that they are being sold style over substance,” he continues. “Consumers are questioning whether personalized nutrition products are based on science or if they are a marketing gimmick which will not create a meaningful, positive impact on their health.”

In addition, consumers are concerned with the lack of contact with healthcare professionals if they use a tool instead of going to a doctor or dietitian in person. According to the report, many consumers trust human expertise more than software; connecting with care providers gives them a sense of “trust and security.” 

Personalized nutrition services must also be flexible, ensuring that consumers can make their own choices. They are concerned that advice may feel forced or is too limited in their food choices or lifestyle. 

At the same time, the report suggests making price transparent from the beginning as consumers assume personalized nutrition tools are expensive, “causing them to steer clear of such tools before finding out the cost.” 

Tool development 
EIT Food Consumer Observatory determines two main personalized nutrition tools: helping consumers collect or analyze their lab results or helping consumers decide which lifestyle changes they should make to achieve specific health goals. 

The report notes that consumers are keen to understand their health status better and where they can improve, but they worry that doing their test or analyzing their own lab results may be too complex without guidance from an expert. 

Companies need to explain clearly how the tests and processes work and consider adding a function where consumers can connect with professionals processing their data. 

Consumers want health to be viewed holistically, with links to improving mental health and, if possible, combining different tools into one. At the same time, the report warns that this would require a level of data from consumers that they are not willing to give.

Grunert predicts that personalized nutrition tools will be adopted more widely.Last month, Foodvalley shared the results of its vitality pilot, which combined the products of personalized nutrition companies into one offer. While promising, the participating companies highlighted several challenges to integrating these data types into customized advice. 

Almost half of respondents say they prefer to pay for personalized nutrition services themselves, followed by health insurers. Only 5% of participants want their employer to pay for these tools. 

Personalized nutrition on the rise 
The report notes that current users of personalized nutrition tools are primarily health-conscious, active consumers or people with a specific health issue. 

“But, slowly, we will see more widespread adoption,” predicts Grunert. “We will see a greater diversity of approaches, differences in the data required from consumers and the type of advice delivered. We will see more tools that combine advice from a nutritionist with recommendations derived by an algorithm.” 

He adds that consumers are “at the heart of our food systems,” highlighting the importance of understanding consumer insights for businesses, manufacturers, governments, policymakers and other stakeholders in food systems. 

“We hope that these stakeholders will use our insights as a helpful resource in dictating the decisions that ultimately impact the well-being and lives of European consumers.” 

By Jolanda van Hal