Understanding food quality labels in complex markets. The role of heuristics in consumer decision-making

Purpose This study examines how consumers interpret differentiated food quality labels in complex markets, focusing on cognitive accessibility and heuristics to explain why signals such as local origin can outweigh formal or technically complex certifications. Design/methodology/approach The article combines bibliometric analysis with a qualitative scoping review. A corpus of 510 publications from 1996–2026 was analysed using science-mapping techniques, followed by a cluster-guided synthesis of evidence on label proliferation, consumer interpretation, willingness to pay and territorial outcomes. Findings The literature has shifted from information provision and attitudes towards the economic valuation of sustainability attributes. The synthesis identifies label overload, attention competition, cue substitution, hypothetical bias and divergence between consumer valuation and territorial outcomes. Local origin often functions as an accessible cue bundling authenticity, trust, freshness and community support, which can increase its influence relative to more complex certifications. Practical implications Regulators, certification bodies and firms should assess overlap before adding labels, organise information hierarchically and combine credible verification with intuitive design. Consumer education should clarify what accessible claims such as “local” do and do not guarantee. Originality/value The study develops a multi-label heuristic framework distinguishing technical credibility from cognitive accessibility and specifying how their relative influence changes with label density. It integrates insights on trust, comprehension, label proliferation and heuristic choice to explain cross-label substitution, local-cue dominance and sub-additive valuation.