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Introduction
A chat began as I was having dinner with my family in a relaxed setting. I requested to have bottled water, and a conversation about the distinctions between tap and bottled water started. In that moment, I received responses from my family stating that there is little difference between the two types of water though tap water is less expensive, and that it was overall less harmful to the environment due to it non packaged form‘s.The topics of taste, beliefs, lifestyle, hygiene, and manipulation were discussed along with questions and experiences.

This led me to realise that I might have been influenced by marketing and advertising. I began to doubt my routines, as well as the truth and variations around drinking water. I learned about marketing deception and how it affected the choices I made. This knowledge that I developed sparked other inquiries, such as how brands attempt to affect your lifestyle decisions and how they attempt to persuade you that their product is a necessary and a wise purchase. When I focused more on the packaging of the products that I buy I felt tricked, there were a lot of promises and it made me believe I made a healthy decision but when I looked into the ingredient list, I began experiencing doubts.

How far away are we from the source of our food?

As consumers, we are often distracted by the use of colour, terms and images on our food products but if we focus on the ingredient lists we come across a lot of unknown terms. It seems like the front of the product is more important then the actual ingredients. For example, in the bottled water package of Barleduc, we see mostly blue and green colours that feel “natural”. This is because we associate these colours with natural elements. It gives us the impression that the water comes from open water surrounded by nature while in reality the fabrication looks like this (see image). I was only drinking water from the brand Barleduc, only to find out that it is the same source of our tap water in certain parts of the Netherlands. This realisation extended my research, I began to doubt all of the products that I consumed as I got closer into the ingredients and origins of my food. I found out that reading labels and trusting the promises on the products were difficult. This was in fact affecting my ability to trust what I was consuming. This affected my health as I tried to consume less processed food as possible. When I tried however, I found it difficult because being raised in a city where our main food suppliers are supermarkets, I found that we could not escape these products.

Because there is so much blurred information I doubted and felt bad about every product that I was eating. Is this food making me sick? What is it actually made of? And who is responsible, to keep us in good health? Through my research I discovered that there was potential corruption in our food systems, which are mainly driven by sales and profit. The lack of transparency regarding the ingredients of these products, appear to be purposefully deceptive.

This topic relates to my studies in “Transformation design” and Powerplay, which has taught me the importance to ask questions and doubt systems. It informs my research by asking questions like: What is the relationship between marketing and the placebo effect for consumers? How can we alter a product or service and create a broader customer audience by persuading them that the product is a need in their life? As a transformation designer, I'm addressing trust issues between people, brands and the government, especially in our food chain where confusing labels lead to doubts. It's crucial to inform consumers about what they're consuming and its health implications. The government's lack of clear communication on new regulations is concerning. Many consumers remain uninformed and misled by packaging.

The Placebo Effect
I investigated the placebo effect and learned that people are deceived on a daily basis through their food choices. It costs them a lot of money and sometimes, even their health. Even when the product wasn't improving my health, the manner the product was presented to me made me believe it was. "The placebo eﬀect is a way for your brain to tell the body what it needs to feel better." (1)

It appeared to me that marketers try to offer us little placebo moments everyday by attracting us to their products. One example of this is the Halal quality mark where a symbol is used to show that the product is safe to eat in following with the Halal practices. A shocking discovery was done by the Keuringsdienst van waarde (2) that there are many agencies that provide halal quality marks, but because halal is not a legally protected concept, the product might actually not be halal. Following the meat producer, Hikmet Gürcüoğlu, some halal agencies already consider a product to be halal if it doesn't contain pork for example. The interpretation of what halal actually means therefore varies greatly. It is an open market, so in theory anyone can start a halal certification agency. There are no general rules.

So my research extended and is focused on "The Placebo Effect in Marketing: Perception vs. Reality” by studying how marketing strategies and placebo effects influence consumer behaviour as well as product perception.

Marketing
Marketing is about identifying places to spend money and develop new revenue streams for a business. The goal at times within the food industry, can be to fraudulently link sales with the promotion of good health. Several food corporations have a dual corporate personality since they both cause and participate in efforts to prevent public health issues. It is more important to have a positive brand image than a healthy product and it appears that it is not about what’s inside anymore but the way the product is presented. Because of this it is very important for our government to protect the people and bring clarity into this subject. This is important because people are uneducated about this food labeling system. It is worth it to invest in the lack of understanding for several purposes. The goal would be to take care of people their health and protect them by informing them. Labels are hard to read and are unclear because they exist out of numbers and out of unfamiliar terms following the general Dutch person. Food combined with marketing can be a sensitive subject because of the combination with health and profit. This is why it is important that we find new ways to improve the current system by offering innovative concepts. Marketing is often a way to make the product better looking and promising compared to other brands. Association with colours, design and words are the key to sell a promising product. A lot of interesting research is done, think about the Bouba and Kiki effect (3) or about colour Synesthesia that proves colour association with internal or external experiences. (4) A survey was done with 120 people by the Expert journal of marketing and they visualised the importance of color in a diagram.

EU Rules and regulations around the labelling/marketing of food packaging:
Brands often walk on the edge and look for loopholes in the law. With the current laws around food, consumers may purchase products without knowing fully what ingredients are used within. According to Foodwatch there are a lot of gaps in the EU food law. (5) They highlighted these issues because the EU is not meeting its own principle and the limits to for example pesticides and additives are relaxed from the point of view of our health and scientific evidence. For example, let's consider E numbers. where the numbers stand for substances. Here, the producer can choose to list the ingredient in words or in numbers. The majority of consumers are unaware of its meaning. If you take a look to the image underneath you will discover an world of food substances that sound very scientific while this label could be on your average food product. People often do not know what the rules are towards EU regulations and our food. After talking with a lot of people around me and asking them questions about substances they had no idea what the terms and numbers on nutritional labels mean. The consumers can often not asses the true nutritional value because it requires knowledge. It also requires a lot of time to study the packages and the ingredient list. Most of the time the information on food packages is printed very small or it is even missing or contradictory. In recent years consumers developed an ethical urge of food and because of this people want to minimise the damage to their health. There is a strong fear because food production is getting technological developments and because of this there is an increase for the producers to pay more attention to their production cycle.

Supermarkets and Packaging, EU Laws regulations
While walking in the supermarket I am surrounded by food which is packaged and labeled. Most of the time I am attracted to the design or color of the packaging. While observing the packaging and turning the product around I find myself overwhelmed with information.

The European Sensory Science Society sparked inquiries for me, such as how brands attempt to affect your lifestyle decisions and how they attempt to persuade you that their product is necessary.For example, a product can convince you through marketing, to suggest that it is a wise purchase by making us believe we become healthier and that it’s good for our body.( 6)

For example, here are some of the key points that can be confusing on food labels:
Ingredient names: Sometimes ingredients are listed under scientific or lesser-known names, which can make it difficult for consumers to understand exactly what they are consuming.
Serving size: The recommended serving size on food labels does not always reflect the amount people actually consume, which can lead to confusion about the total calories and nutrients consumed.
Claims and marketing language: Manufacturers often use claims such as "low fat", "natural" or "healthy" on their packaging, but these terms can have different meanings and are not always regulated or standardised, which can lead to confusion about the actual nutritional value of the food. product.
Added sugars: Sugars can appear on food labels under different names, such as corn syrup, dextrose, fructose, and so on. This can make it difficult for consumers to determine how much added sugar is actually in a product.
Nutrition Labeling: Understanding nutrition labeling, including the number of calories, amount of fat, carbohydrates and protein, can be confusing for some consumers, especially if they are not well versed in nutrients and nutritional needs.
Vague ingredient lists: Sometimes certain ingredients are grouped under general terms such as "herbs" or "natural flavours," making it difficult to know exactly which ingredients are in the product.
Allergen information: Although manufacturers are required to list allergens on food labels, it can still be difficult to identify allergens, especially if they appear under different names or if there is a chance of cross-contamination during production.

To address these challenges, food authorities and consumer organisations like Foodwatch are continuously working to improve food labels and are trying to increase nutritional awareness among consumers. Still it is not enough following my research, people are still badly informed. There are people and groups who are critical of certain aspects of food regulation and policy, and who believe that the government is not doing enough to protect public health from unhealthy food practices.

Trust and transparency
Consumers don't seem to know where their food comes from, and this could be linked to a general lack of openness in labeling—a problem that also shows up in governmental studies on official data (7). It is difficult to assess labels because consumers usually do not have sufficient knowledge regarding topics such as microorganisms, toxic substances, and the processes in the food chain that impact safety. Consumers frequently find it challenging to evaluate the safety of food. Furthermore, they are unaware of the origins of a lot of food items. For them, the process of producing food is unclear and complicated due to their lack of knowledge on the subject.

The criticism towards the food industry can take different forms, such as:

Influence of the Food Industry: Some people think that the food industry has too much power over regulators and lawmakers, influencing decisions to benefit the sector's interests rather than the general welfare.
Unhealthy food environment: A lot of people are pointing out to factors such as excessive promotion of unhealthy foods, the availability of cheap but nutritionally poor foods, and limited access to healthy foods in certain communities as prove that the government is failing to create a healthy food environment for our society.
Limitations on food choices: Some people feel that the government goes too far in controlling what people can eat and consider that some laws, such as those prohibiting the sale of certain foods or beverages, violate their right to personal freedom.
Dietary Guidelines and Policies: There are disagreements on the efficacy and accuracy of dietary guidelines and policies established by governmental organisations. Some people argue that the guidelines are outdated or fail to sufficiently take into account the most recent scientific research.

Most people are generally agreeing that government regulations of the food business and public health protection are important. Nonetheless, there are constant discussions over the effectiveness and fairness of certain regulations as well as the degree to which the government protects the rights of citizens. Food information legislation is a crucial regulatory framework in the internal food product market of the European Union. It started out as a standardised procedure to apply the proportionality principle to the unrestricted flow of products, but it has since grown into a sophisticated system of primary and secondary legislation. This legislation combines concepts from several regulatory levels inside the internal market. Through trade every EU citizen is influenced in their day-to-day life by the food law, especially the food information legalisation. A growing number of people who live outside of the EU are also impacted by trade on a daily and lifelong basis. It's not often apparent in academic conversations who the "average consumer" really is or what we should be expecting from them. This makes it challenging to design guidelines for food information legislation or to build policies that work for everyone. Less faith in EU legislation may result from these problems.

Clarity and food labels
Did you ever wonder why most of the food labels you consume have a list of ingredients that sounds just like a scientific experiment? Food labels can be a lot clearer and to offer this clarity it is important to first recognise the neglect and work from there into a new perspective. As a transformation designer who is specialised in the social, I am mainly focussing on research to find out where there is room for improvement. After talking with organisations, marketers, designers and the people around me I learned a lot about how producers and their products are trying to deceive us compared to the ingredient lists. Consumers should be able to dive deep within their food product labels and should be able to understand them to make healthy decisions. For a number of reasons, food labeling must be accurate and clear. It first upholds customer confidence. Consumer confidence in the food business and regulatory agencies is upheld when they are certain that the product contains exactly what is indicated on the label. This trust strengthens the bond between the store/ brand and the customer and serves as a fundamental guide in helping consumers make better food choices. Second, for customers with certain dietary requirements and limitations, proper food labeling are essential. For people with long-term conditions like diabetes and heart disease, or people with food allergies and intolerances, accurate and clear nutritional information may be the difference between life and death.

Survey
My focus is on urban consumers reliant on supermarkets. Interviews reveal they often overlook food labels. I started a survey and asked people what terms and packaging attracted them and what products they believed were making them healthy. Although food labels contain a lot of useful information, there are some aspects that can be confusing for consumers. With this survey I can reflect on what innovative need there is in the food label industry.

Looking at the results of the survey I recognise a pattern. People who are following a diet or have a allergy are more likely to read food labels. When I saw the answers on question number 4 and 5 I was chocked. This proved to me that almost no one who participated in my survey was aware of E numbers and that they find the labels unclear. I asked people where they get their sources from and most people answered the internet or the label itself. I asked myself if there was a better way to spread information around food labeling that is easy accessible. My main focus will be around dietary and allergy but also about translating terms and numbers into easy recognisable vocabulary.

The results based on the research of consumer monitoring is showing a combination of relational trust and trust based on previous experiences. When it is coming to knowledge and skills, all parties that are involved in the food system (government, farmers, supermarkets, and food producers) are generally scoring high. However, it is noticeable that only farmers score high on subjects like honesty and transparency. This is because people associate farmers with “natural” foods. For all the other parties involved, there is still a lot of room for improvements to reduce the overall perception of food risks and increase trust in food safety.

Conclusion
After investigating food labeling, I discovered that a significant amount of money is spent on misleading labels. On average, a household in the Netherlands is yearly spending almost 2,000 euros on their groceries with misleading labels. That is around 8.7 billion euros for all households in the Netherlands combined, so if you think about this it will approximately be 38 euros per week or 1,976 euros per year per household. With 8.3 million households in the Netherlands, following the records of the CBS, the total reaches 8.7 billion euros. Despite this, there are many misleading products that still fill our shelves because there are to low chances of detection and light penalties, following the records of Foodwatch. It could be that brands, marketers, and the government often work around the truth, this could hurt the trust in the system and brands overall. According to Questionmark's 2020 study (8), about 70% of the products offered by supermarkets are ultra-processed and unhealthy, and 82% of all the promotions in the supermarket folders and brochures are for unhealthy food.

I conclude with a proposition on how to read food labels:

Order of ingredients: The ingredients are listed in order of quantity in a product. So the front is what matters most. If sugar is listed first, you know that this product consists largely of sugar.
Nicknames: Pseudonyms are often used. Everyone knows sugar is not good for your health but there are many names for sugar. In addition to glucose and fructose, the names dextrose, syrup, concentrated juice, candy, caramel, lactose, sucrose and maltose are also widely used as an alternative to the word sugar.
Light products: A light product can be called this if it contains at least 30% less fat, sugar or energy than a comparable product. A light product is not always healthier. Compare the label of the standard product with the light product. You will then see what each macronutrient has been replaced by.
E numbers: The list of E numbers is very long. E numbers are additions to products. Examples of them are color enhancers, binders or flavour additives. They have been approved by the European Union. A manufacturer may decide for itself how this is stated on a label. This may be as an E number or in its full name, such as citric acid (E330) or Ascorbyl palmitate (E304). Not all E numbers are bad and it is almost impossible to avoid them. Still, it is worth limiting E numbers (and processed products).

Nutrition labeling aims to offer consumers information on the nutritional value of food products right when they're making a purchase. This helps people make healthier food choices while still maintaining their freedom to choose. Additionally, it cuts down on the time consumers spend searching for this information, increasing the likelihood that they'll use it to make informed decisions.

After the research that I conducted, I found that not only does the design of a product portray a misleading image but also, that the ingredients can be difficult to understand. One in three Dutch people following the RIVM (9) find the information on food labels unclear. Consumers generally grasp key terms and can use the information for straightforward tasks. However, as the information and tasks become more complex, confusion tends to increase. When analysing this, it's crucial to differentiate between subjective and objective understanding. Subjective understanding refers to the interpretation consumers give to the label information, including their belief that they've grasped the message. Objective understanding, on the other hand, assesses whether the consumer's interpretation aligns with the sender's intended message, which can sometimes be quite different.

Leads to my tool / project
Knowing what you are eating is the first step towards a healthier lifestyle, and that starts with reading and interpreting nutrition labels. Walk into any supermarket and you will be overwhelmed by a big diversity of products and labels. Almost always the positioning of relevant topics is slightly different on one label than on the other. By reading labels carefully, you know what you are buying and you can compare products better. Yet reading a label is sometimes difficult. The product packaging is often full of numbers, logos and advertising texts. What should you believe and what should you not believe and what do the abbreviations mean?

After all the the research I did I created a concept for an application that should lead to more awareness of our food labeling. In my project I will offer an application on how to read food labels and offer tips and tricks on understanding labeling. I hope that people will think about their next purchase and consider what effect it might have upon their body. My application is meant to unfold the terms and numbers on labels into a understandable and recognisable translation. The food industry and the labels of the products are loaded with information but for now I mainly focussed on problematic issues that also occurred within my own experience with labels. The concept of my application will eventually evolve, but as a transformation designer it is good to focus on the main issues and neglects. For consumers or the catering industry it could be difficult to recognise if a product is safe to eat or fits with someones diet. I worked in the catering industry for years and this is where I met a problem within the food industry and its labels. with the experience of reading the food labels with the intention to detect a specific dietary wish or allergy for a customer I came across a problem. It can be time consuming and most of the time we weren’t able to guarantee if a product was safe to consume for this specific person. This is simple because the terms and numbers that are used are not within our “daily dictionary”. So without any knowledge it gets hard to know what you’re reading.

After researching color, shape and terminology usage in combination with marketing, I thought of a way to translate substances and dietary clarification terms into colours because this will be easy recognisable and transparant. By scanning the barcode of a product within the application you are directed to un enfolded label where it is directly recognisable if this product is suitable for you or your customer for example. It makes it less time consuming and safe to guarantee. I also focused on the so called E-numbers, here you can see what the number stands for and what it is used for, if it is synthetic or naturel and if it is safe to use or better to avoid. This is simply to educate and to fill in the gap between unclear labels and the knowledge of the consumer. The goal is to educate people in their consumerism and boost their knowledge of product perception. The prejudices will reduce and the availability to this knowledge will be available easier. Also, it can reduce the cost on misleading product packaging and help people eat more healthily.