Does sustainability marketing make people think food is healthier? A systematic review of health halo effects.

Background: Information on sustainability has become increasingly prominent in food environments, shaping how consumers interpret the environmental attributes of food products. This is beginning to attract attention among scholars of the commercial determinants of health as evidence of the effects of sustainability labels and claims on perceptions of healthiness. However, their implications for dietary choices and population health remain fragmented. We report a systematic review examining the relationship between sustainability labels and claims and perceived food healthiness. Methods: We searched Web of Science and PubMed for empirical studies examining the relationship between sustainability-related product cues and perceived food healthiness. A total of 2714 records were screened, and 233 articles were assessed for eligibility. Of these, 25 studies met our inclusion criteria and were included in the review. We conducted a narrative synthesis of the evidence, analysing patterns across study designs, types of sustainability-related cues, and health-related outcomes. Results: Across the included studies, sustainability labels and claims frequently increased perceived product healthiness. These effects varied by the type of health-related outcome considered and were more consistently observed in general health perceptions (i.e., food healthiness) than in evaluations of specific nutritional attributes (i.e., calorie content). They also tended to be stronger when these signals were presented in isolation rather than alongside additional product cues. Conclusion: This review extends the literature on health halo effects to sustainability-related food information and suggests that sustainability labels and claims may influence consumer judgments beyond their intended environmental or ethical purpose. These findings highlight the importance of considering potential spillover effects when designing and regulating sustainability-related information in food environments.