What we got wrong about healthy grocery nudges (and what the data taught us)

We've been running the FoodHealth Score Chrome extension for a few weeks across Target, Walmart, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods. We thought we knew what people wanted. We were wrong.

What we assumed: Show people a FoodHealth Score, suggest a better product, done.

What actually happened: People didn't just want a swap. They wanted to know why. A number wasn't enough - shoppers want to understand what makes the alternative better before they trust it. More fiber. Less added sugar. A cleaner ingredient list. Once we added those insights alongside the swap suggestion, we saw a lot more swaps clicked on.

It makes complete sense in hindsight. You wouldn't take a stranger's recommendation at face value. Why would you take an algorithm's?

We're still early. But the data is interesting. People want to try new things. They just need the right information at the right moment, with enough context to trust it.

Would love to know: when you're grocery shopping online, how do you decide what ends up in your cart?