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The label was created to inform, but today it increasingly confuses consumers.
Tomorrow, trust will no longer be found on the shelves, but online in verified and personalized data. Artificial intelligence agents will turn transparency into value, and consumers into conscious decision-makers.

THE CURRENT SITUATION

Originally conceived to provide information, the label now generates growing uncertainty. Italians, like other Europeans, are asking for fewer slogans and more facts. An SWG survey from July 2025 confirms it: people want verifiable content, clear but not simplistic explanations, and the integration of data and independent verification. “Green”, “sustainable”, “healthy”, “free from”, or “rich in” are no longer enough. What people want are facts, numbers, and reliable sources.

THE AGE OF PERSONALIZATION 

The good news is that this data already exists and it can be integrated with individual information such as metabolic, physiological, and behavioral data. Consumers now expect dynamic and personalized information, built around their own needs. We are entering the age of personalized labels and packaging, where transparency and data become an integral part of the experience.

NAVIGATING THROUGH TRUST AND CHOICE

“Fewer slogans, more verifiable content” is the main request coming from consumers. Truly explaining what “sustainable” or “healthy” means has become a priority for those about to make purchasing decisions. Integrating data and independent verification is now a widespread expectation, especially among younger generations. And those who show not only their progress but also their limits inspire greater trust than those who share only success stories.

Information builds trust and freedom of choice, but offering only what benefits the producer no longer works. In a connected market, where everything can be verified, citizens must be able to know, compare, and choose critically, also with the help of artificial intelligence.

FROM STORYTELLING TO CONSCIOUS CHOICES

The label on the shelf appeals to our fast and instinctive decision-making system: colors, shapes, and catchy words trigger emotional responses. Critical evaluation, on the other hand, belongs to the cortex, where we analyze numbers, sources, and comparisons among alternatives. In this context, two factors are essential: accessible data (traceability, ingredients, methods) and data literacy. AI agents can translate technical language into personal goals: health, taste, price. Emotion remains, but choice becomes rational again.

THE END OF THE PHYSICAL LABEL?

The traditional label is a tool of the past: limited space, technical or persuasive language, and static content in a dynamic age. Digital formats, by contrast, can offer navigable ingredients, real-time traceability, and verified sources on environmental and social impacts. And thanks to AI agents, information becomes dynamic and personalized, contextualized to individual preferences, without the need to “go to the shelf” to understand it.

Shopping habits are changing rapidly: purchasing will increasingly move online, guided by AI agents, data, and trust-based algorithms. The role of the physical label will quickly diminish. It will not disappear overnight, but trust will move beyond packaging, toward objective, interactive data. Those who invest today in traceability, digital disclosure, and personalization will gain a decisive competitive advantage.

THE ROLE OF COMPANIES AND CITIZENS

Transparency is a goal achieved through a gradual process. To turn it into a competitive advantage, companies should:

• Pay attention to every step of the traceability chain, from origin to standards;
• Explain processes and decisions clearly, with independent verification;
• Provide data, not slogans, readable even by consumers’ AI agents;
• Design information to be concise for everyone, in-depth for those who seek it, simple but never simplistic;
• Update and engage continuously.

Citizens, for their part, should make the following choices:

• Rely on data, not on images;
• Demand traceability and independent verification;
• Use information to improve their lifestyle;
• Reward those who show their limits as well as their successes.

PROPOSALS TO IMPROVE THE SITUATION

At Competere, we strongly believe in innovation, but one that embraces tradition as well.
That’s why we propose:

• Minimum standards for digital transparency, shared and interoperable;
• Open data for qualified third parties and artificial intelligences, with regular audits;
• Education in data literacy and critical thinking, in schools and across the media;
• Incentives for verified disclosure: transparency ratings, rewards for open digital data, and AI-readable information systems.

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