Consumer actions lag sustainability support
While consumers are in favor of sustainable practices and products by overwhelming margins, their shopping behavior doesn’t always match their beliefs.
Almost all (95%) U.S. consumers surveyed by Numerator say they believe in practicing sustainability and 91% find it at least somewhat important for brands to become more sustainable.
In addition, an overwhelming 97% of respondents say they implement at least one recycling practice in their daily lives and the same percentage say they implement at least one recycling practice in their daily lives, with 95% saying they are mindful of water usage.
However, when it comes to making purchase decisions, respondents do not adhere to their professed sustainability beliefs at the same rates. For example, sustainable food consumption lags behind other respondent conservation practices.
Only 28% of respondents are willing to reduce meat consumption and 21% say they will reduce dairy intake, while fewer than one-in-four (23%) prioritizes eco-certifications when making purchasing decisions.
When it comes to purchasing sustainably, fewer than half (47%) of respondents buy sustainable products for their home and 45% use non-toxic cleaners, while only 24% purchase sustainable apparel.
Two-in-three (67%) respondents say that higher cost is the reason they do not purchase sustainable products. Other popular reasons include lack of availability (30%). limited product selection (28%) and lack of information (24%).
Looking more closely at how informed respondents are about sustainable certifications, the survey found that while 61% of respondents recognize and understand the USDA Organic certification, recognition of others lags behind.
This includes respondent recognition of certifications such as non-GMO Project Verified (46%) Fair Trade Certification (40%), Carbon Neutral Certification (37%), Cradle to Cradle Certified (17%) and Certified B Corporation (17%).
The survey also asked how important respondents think sustainability is for different product categories. More than four-in-10 respondents said that sustainability is extremely or very important for paper products (59%), household cleaners (57%), food / beverages (55%), beauty/personal care items (49%), textiles (45%), electronics (45%), medication & supplements (45%), fast food (42%) and apparel/footwear (41%).
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Numerator surveyed 7,500 U.S. consumers for their thoughts on sustainability and how they incorporate sustainable practices and products into their daily lives.
