Don’t Be Fooled By Healthy Food Packaging

Have you ever started a new eating healthy initiative, and found that the foods you need to buy seem to be clearly packaged? You know, healthy foods always have “that look”. Desaturated colors, natural textures, serifed fonts. Well, not so fast. Sometimes, packaging design can utilize design principles for nefarious reasons: to trick consumers into thinking they’re making smarter food choices than they really are. Turns out, your perception of a packaged item of food being healthy is more important than the actual contents. Brands strategically use packaging elements to create the perception of healthiness, even when the nutritional reality may not align. Always be careful of the gap between perception and reality, which can lead to dietary choices you wouldn’t make if you were fully informed.