Assessing the Effectiveness of Food Safety Labels in Shaping Buying Behavior : A Study of Printed and Electronic Advertisements in Homagama DS Division, Colombo District

Abstract

Food Safety Labels act as a vital link between consumers and the food industry, serving as a mechanism for delivering health, nutrition, and safety information. However, despite their importance, the effectiveness of these labels in shaping consumer buying decisions remains underexplored in Sri Lanka. This research aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of food safety labels in influencing consumer buying behavior, particularly examining the impact of printed versus electronic advertisements within the Homagama DS Division, Colombo District. A pre-tested, structured questionnaire was distributed to 100 adult consumers selected through convenience sampling. Quantitativ e datawere analy zed utllizing descriptive statistics and multiple reglession analysis via SPSS version 22. Results indicated that both printed and electronic advefiisements enhance consumer awareness; however, electronic media proved marginally more effective due to its visual appeal and broader reach. Among the independent variables, consumer awareness and understanding (p : 0.002), trust and perceived quality (p: 0.001), and label design and format (p : 0.030) were statistically significant at the 0.05 level, while information content (p : 0.082) wassignificant at 0.1 level. In contrast, health and content claims (p:0.817) showed no significant impact on consumer buying behavior. Demographic factors showed no moderating effect, indicating that perceptions of label reliability cut across socio-economic lines' The research concludes that psychological and perceptual factors especially trust, label design play a more crucial role than health content or demographics in shaping consumer decisions. These findings highlight the need for integrated communication strategies that combine accurate information with visually appealing and trustworthy label presentations, offering practical insights for policymakers, regulatory authorities, and manufacturers to enhance label credibility and promote healthier purchasing decisions in Sri Lanka