Supplementary file 1_How packaging cues shape purchase intentions for intangible cultural heritage foods: evidence from heritage labels and storytelling.docx

The results showed that storytelling significantly enhanced consumers’ cultural identity with the ICH food and their purchase intention, whereas the ICH label did not produce a consistent independent effect. In the self-purchase context, storytelling alone generated a positive effect. In the gift-giving context, the joint presentation of storytelling and the ICH label produced a stronger positive effect.

The conditional indirect-effect analysis indicated that storytelling was consistently positively associated with purchase intention through cultural identity, whereas the indirect effect of the ICH label depended on whether storytelling was present. However, purchase motivation did not significantly moderate the overall indirect effects. Because cultural identity and purchase intention were measured concurrently, the proposed mediating relationships require further validation in future research.

This study demonstrates that packaging cues for ICH food do not universally produce consistent positive effects. Rather, their effectiveness depends on how the cues are presented and combined, as well as on the purchase context. These findings provide a theoretical basis for the context-sensitive design of packaging communication strategies for ICH food.</p>