Consumer Brands raises concerns about shopping app data

ARLINGTON, Va. — Shopping apps designed to help consumers evaluate food, beverages and household products may be relying on inaccurate or outdated information, according to the Consumer Brands Association.

Rishi Banerjee, senior director of SmartLabel at Consumer Brands, said that many third-party apps assign scores, flag ingredients, and classify products as “good” or “bad,” even when their underlying data and assessment methods may be unreliable.

In a review of a major product-data provider, Consumer Brands found that nearly 39% of product attributes were inaccurate, Banerjee said. Discrepancies included nutritional information such as calories, sugar, and sodium that did not match product labels.

“That’s nearly two out of every five data points a shopper might be trusting to help choose the products that work best for their lifestyle,” Banerjee wrote.

Incorrect product information can pose particular concerns for consumers managing allergies, diabetes, and other medical conditions. Banerjee also argued that reducing complex dietary and health considerations to a single score can omit information shoppers need to make informed choices.

The association said that some third-party platforms obtain product information from scraped, crowdsourced, or estimated data rather than directly from manufacturers. In addition, the methods used to generate ratings and recommendations are not always publicly available or grounded in recognized scientific standards.

Banerjee encouraged consumers to consult product labels for the most immediate information and use manufacturer-supplied resources for additional details.

Consumer Brands operates SmartLabel, an industry-led product transparency initiative available across the food, beverage, personal care, household cleaning, pet care, dietary supplement, and over-the-counter medication categories.

Consumers can access the information by scanning a SmartLabel QR code on participating products or by searching on SmartLabel.org. The platform provides ingredient definitions, allergen information, country of origin, certifications, sustainability programs, usage instructions, and safety advisories where applicable.

“Accurate product information isn’t just a nice-to-have feature, it’s the foundation for transparency and trust,” Banerjee wrote.