3 Ways Brands Can Actually Make Food Shopping Sustainable for Consumers
3 Ways Brands Can Actually Make Food Shopping Sustainable for Consumers
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Even in the face of higher prices, today’s conscientious consumers are on the hunt for sustainable food products. But they face challenges in maintaining the behavior. We’ve uncovered a series of solutions, however, backed by Suzy data.
It’s a fact: Consumers like the idea of sustainability, so much that they’re willing to pay higher prices for sustainable products and reusable packaging. Doing so gives them a sense that they’re helping their bodies, as well as the planet. But when it comes to actaully shopping for food sustainably, consumers often struggle. Brands can take steps to help though, according to a recent Suzy webinar, “What Matters Most to Sustainably Conscious Food Shoppers?”
Leaning on Suzy data from an early-April survey of 1,000 Americans, Melissa Dunn, Suzy’s SVP of Marketing, discussed the ways food companies can help guide food shoppers toward more truly sustainable habits with Eric Pierce, VP of Business Insights at the New Hope Network, an information platform aimed at driving responsible growth in the natural and organic products industry. Here are some big takeaways:
Don’t Be Shy: Promote Product Sustainability
Nearly half — 48% — of consumers tell Suzy they would sacrifice brand name to make their food shopping more sustainable. Meanwhile, 30% said they would sacrifice convenience to engage in more sustainable food shopping, and 26% said they would even forgo taste in their choices.
These figures clearly indicate that shoppers will go above and beyond to find sustainable foods in stores. It’s up to their producers to make them more conspicuous on shelves.
“This could be an opportunity, especially for brands that are rising in the category to really make a name for themselves,” said Dunn during the conversation. “They can lean in and own what sustainability practices they’re following, and really be able to walk the walk and talk the talk.”
Among the most bombastic of these efforts: No Evil Foods. While this company generates “plant meats,” according to its website, the company strives to address food insecurity, economic justice, and climate change.
“Their mission statement is, ‘Do no evil,’” Pierce pointed out. “I believe this is spot on for consumers who want to know that their purchases are helping to create a positive change in the world, and that the brand that they’re buying from simply does no evil.”
Change Production Practices — For Starters
Shoppers tell Suzy that they want brands to adopt more sustainable operations. More than half — 54% — of consumers say it’s important for brands to take such actions, and 50% see an urgent need for more sustainable practices on the part of brands.
While that might seem like a tremendous ask of food companies, there is a benefit for them, too. One in three consumers tell Suzy they’re willing to pay higher prices for sustainable food and drink products.
What exactly does this look like for brands, though? When Suzy asked consumers what they believe are the most important things in food sustainability, they said:
Limiting food waste (46%)
Supporting environmental health (40%)
Improving access to quality nutritional food (36%)
Protecting animals (31%)
Reducing carbon emissions (30%)
Supporting the local community (23%)
Providing fair wages (22%)
Pursuing social equity and justice (13%)
“What we see in this list is that sustainability lives in your business values,” said Pierce. “It lives in the way in which your business does business, the integrity of your business and in the operations of your business.”
Educate Consumers, Broadly, About Sustainability
Sustainability might be a big buzzword in food and beverage right now, but the term’s definition might vary person to person. This leads to consumer confusion or ignorance about how to shop for sustainable products.
“One definition is ‘made in a way that causes little or no damage to the environment,’” Dunn observed. “But the purest definition of this word, it actually means ‘something can be maintained or continued.’”
Suzy data shows that consumers want to be better informed about sustainability and are seeking transparency on the part of brands. More than half of consumers — 54% — want brands to give them more information on sustainability.
“They want to know the impact of their purchases,” Dunn said of consumers. “They also want to be educated and they want brands to help them understand what this all means.”
78% of consumers tell Suzy they want information from brands regarding packaging materials. 77% say they want to learn about brands’ recycling efforts, while 40% indicated they want to learn how to show more sustainably.
Dunn applauded the Frito-Lay company’s efforts in exploring compostable packaging with a can’t-miss-it green banner stretched across the top of snack bags reading “COMPOSTABLE.” Simply tossing a snack bag into a compostable container, thus, makes the consumer’s “lives easier,” Dunn said, while trying to make responsible choices, both in-store and after purchase.
“Consumers are really open about being educated,” Dunn said. “They’re frankly yearning for this information, so it’s really the responsibility of different brands to take this action and do something with it.”
Want to learn more about consumer preferences and sustainability? Download the Suzy Sustainability Report to learn more about how consumers are thinking, feeling, and behaving around sustainability.
For more information on how your brand can respond to consumer desires for more sustainable food shopping, check out the entire webinar on Suzy.com.