Study: Understanding Sustainability Doesn't Translate Into Food Choices

13 Feb 2014 --- Sustainability labelling on food and drink products informs consumers about environmental and ethical issues related to food choice and consumption. However, it is unclear what impact this information has on consumer behaviour, in light of the number of other types of information also found on food and drink packaging, including price and nutritional value.

Researchers from Aarhus University in Denmark and the European Food Information Council in Belgium have published the results of a pan-European study about consumers’ concerns, understanding and use of sustainability labels on food products. Examining consumers in the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and Poland revealed that even though the use of sustainability labels is associated with consumers’ concerns on sustainability issues and understanding of sustainability labels, the influence of sustainability labels on food choice is still limited and competes with other product-related attributes.

Sustainability labelling aims to increase transparency along the food chain and promote a more sustainable consumption. However, previous research has shown that the influence of sustainability labels not only competes with other product characteristics such as taste and price, but also depends on how ‘motivated’ consumers are to deal with sustainability-related issues and whether they actually understand the meaning of such labels. The purpose of this study was to shed light on European consumers’ level of understanding and motivation to use sustainability labelling in a food and drink choice context and to examine possible trade-offs, i.e. which aspects are more relevant in a food choice setting.

A nationally representative online panel of 4,408 participants in six European countries was used to investigate the level of public attention to sustainability issues. Of the most popular sustainability labels in Europe, Rainforest Alliance, Carbon Footprint, Fair Trade and Animal Welfare were selected to measure understanding and use among consumers. Motivation (consumer concerns with sustainability-related issues) was measured both in general and on a product-specific level. Similarly, understanding of sustainability in general, as well as with respect to the selected sustainability labels, was analysed. Finally, the influence of sustainability labelling, price and nutritional value on food choice was tested for six product categories (breakfast cereals, coffee, chocolate, ice cream, ready meals and soft drinks). Respondents were asked to choose one among a set of food products which varied in ethical labelling (Fair Trade and Animal Welfare), environmental labelling (Rainforest Alliance and Carbon Footprint), nutritional value and price.

Most consumers are familiar with the term ‘sustainability’, and they mostly associate it with environmental issues. However, the term is abstract and difficult to deal with. Self-reported awareness of the term ‘sustainability’ differed considerably between countries. Participants in the UK, France, Germany and Spain predominantly associate sustainability with environmental protection. Swedish consumers refer to the shelf life of foods, while Polish respondents place more importance on maintaining a certain standard of living. Furthermore, when testing consumers’ understanding of the meaning of the four selected sustainability labels, the majority opted for the right answer, except for the Rainforest Alliance logo, with most respondents believing that this label stands for protecting wildlife in the rain forest.

While consumers reported high levels of concern about sustainability in food production in general, when it came to specific product categories, sustainability issues were not always among their major concerns. With regards to the types of label information consumers look at in food products, ethical and environmental impacts were among the least popular information. Further analysis of the results showed that motivation and understanding have an interactive effect on the use of sustainability labels. Better understanding is associated with higher use of sustainability labels, only when consumers are highly concerned about sustainability issues. In contrast, for consumers who are less concerned about sustainability, a better understanding of sustainability labels can result in more conscious refrain from using those labels. Finally, compared to the price and nutritional information, sustainability labels had a smaller impact on consumers’ choices of food products.The authors conclude that the use of sustainability labels is still limited among European consumers. Motivation and understanding alone do not seem to be sufficient to result in a more sustainable eating behaviour. This may be related to the trade-offs that consumers have in making their everyday food choices, for instance, when they take into account price-related and nutritional quality aspects of foods. The results do not necessarily imply that sustainability information will not play a role in future food purchases. When sustainability issues in the context of food and drink become more prominent in the public debate, the sustainability concept, which already seems salient in consumers’ minds, may translate more prominently into actions in the future.

Source: EUFIC

Grunert KG, Hieke S, Wills JM. (2014). Sustainability labels on food products: Consumer motivation, understanding and use. Food Policy 44:177-189. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2013.12.001.