Online Grocery Platforms May Lack Crucial Food Labeling Information, Posing Health Risks

A new study reveals an information gap in online grocery shopping: Crucial nutrition and allergen details—required on food packaging in stores—are often missing on grocery websites.
Consumers have long relied on food packaging in brick-and-mortar stores for key nutrition labeling. However, research from Tufts University and New York University (NYU) reveals that as more Americans turn to online grocery shopping, this level of transparency is increasingly absent.
“When you or I walk into a grocery store, we can reasonably expect to find certain information on most food packaging. That’s not always the case when shopping online,” Sean Cash, Bergstrom Foundation professor in global nutrition at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, told The Epoch Times.
“For someone with a severe food allergy, there’s a risk of acute harm—even death—if this information isn’t accessible,” Cash told The Epoch Times.
Beyond allergens, the lack of details on nutrition also undermines efforts to promote healthier choices, particularly for people managing chronic conditions like hypertension, he said.
The Epoch Times reached out to these stores for comments.
While the study found FDA-required information often missing or difficult to access, marketing claims were much more prevalent. Of the 60 products analyzed, 83.7 percent featured voluntary claims such as “contains real milk” or “no artificial colors,” despite these labels not being legally required.
“We saw many cases in which a nutrition facts label, for example, was only accessible after scrolling through a dozen marketing images, essentially forcing any consumers seeking that label to interact with marketing language,” Sharib said in the press release.
Although no laws are being broken, Cash noted that the emphasis on marketing messages—often front and center—leaves consumers without the essential health information they need to make informed decisions.
For example, manufacturers such as Stonyfield Organic and Mondelez for Oreo cookies provide up-to-date nutrition and ingredient information on their product pages, even if that information is missing from online retailers.
However, this is not seen as a long-term fix.
“Consumers shouldn’t have to go to multiple websites to find essential health information,” said Cash. “The burden should be on retailers and regulators, not on the consumer.”
The FDA also has the authority to extend its labeling requirements to online grocery platforms. Cash said the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) could link labeling requirements to supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP) benefits, ensuring retailers provide necessary food information.
However, experts say that relying on government action alone isn’t enough.
In the short term, consumer pressure can help close the information gap.
“If more consumers voice their frustration, retailers may feel compelled to change,” Cash added.
It is time to update labeling regulations to reflect the realities of 21st-century commerce, said Cash. While the best solution is for retailers to provide FDA-required labels, he added that a public database of food information could help online platforms comply without maintaining the data themselves.
“We simply cannot continue to let this sector grow without modern regulation,” said Sharib in the press release.