Mid Sweden University

The increasing costs in public health due to poor nutrition habits have lead governments and media to react in favor of a healthy trend. This has been a starter point for food manufacturers to include health-related arguments into their communication strategies, also known as nutrition and health claims. Therefore, specific foodstuffs and drinks have emerged since 2003 in the international food industry, giving birth to a growing and lucrative market: the market of functional foods. However, using such claims is not without consequences for the consumer. Among them, confusion and skepticism are investigated, measuring their impact on consumer’s sentiment toward marketing. A study using snowball-sampling was conducted, reaching 119 respondents. Even though confusion (63%) and skepticism (47%) are represented, they do not impact the consumer sentiment of marketing. Rather, it supports the idea that consumers associate marketing with the way businesses work, finding this to be a normal situation. Results highlight the necessity for greater communication of nutrition and health claims.