From Waste to Taste: How “Ugly” Labels Can Increase Purchase of Unattractive Produce
研究通过七项实验发现，给外观有瑕疵的农产品贴上“丑陋”标签（如“丑陋黄瓜”），能纠正消费者对味道的偏见，从而增加购买意愿，且效果优于“不完美”标签，但需配合适度折扣。
Food producers and retailers throw away large amounts of perfectly edible produce that fails to meet appearance standards, contributing to the environmental issue of food waste. The authors examine why consumers discard aesthetically unattractive produce, and they test a low-cost, easy-to-implement solution: emphasizing the produce’s aesthetic flaw through “ugly” labeling (e.g., labeling cucumbers with cosmetic defects “Ugly Cucumbers” on store displays or advertising). Seven experiments, including two conducted in the field, demonstrate that “ugly” labeling corrects for consumers’ biased expectations regarding key attributes of unattractive produce—particularly tastiness—and thus increases purchase likelihood. “Ugly” labeling is most effective when associated with moderate (rather than steep) price discounts. Against managers’ intuition, it is also more effective than alternative labeling that does not exclusively point out the aesthetic flaw, such as “imperfect” labeling. This research provides clear managerial recommendations on the labeling and the pricing of unattractive produce while addressing the issue of food waste.