Consumers and Sustainability: Food and Beverage

Publication Date	September 2009
Publisher	Packaged Facts
Product Type	Report
Pages	43
ISBN Number	not applicable
Product Code	PKF00167

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Summary

The food and beverage market is central to consumer perceptions of sustainability. When the consumption of sustainable foods is motivated by personal benefits, adoption mirrors a health and wellness progression in which consumers first consider the impacts of things in the body, followed by on the body, and finally around the body. Therefore, as consumers become more educated about the environmental, social, and economic implications of foods and beverages, their health and wellness motivations dovetail with societal concerns, such that food shopping choices become salient to all four zones of sustainability:

The Personal Benefit Zone
The Environmental Zone
The Social Zone
The Economic Zone

In addition, many of the attributes that generally describe quality eating experiences, particularly freshness, also resonate as sustainable in the food and beverage market.

Measurement of sustainable products purchases across 20 food and beverage categories shows a range of adoption rates among sustainability-minded consumers as well as a range in willingness to pay a 20% cost premium. Nonetheless, while sustainability consumers have certainly modified their behavior in response to financial conditions, tradeoffs and cutbacks, they are less likely to be made in product categories they view as essential to their quality of life, including food.

To balance the agenda to save money with the commitment to buy sustainable goods, many consumers are shifting purchases of these products to discount outlets such as Walmart. At the same time (and in response), supermarkets are upping the sustainability credentials of their private-label lines, opening up another pathway to sustainable-at-a-discount shopping. Retailers are also stressing sustainability options outside of the packaged goods aisles, notably local produce and bulk merchandise. At the current intersection of sustainability awareness and financial downturn, the market is ripe for food and beverage products that allow consumers to shop more sustainably but also spend less money.

Report Methodology

This report was jointly produced by The Hartman Group and Packaged Facts, and is based on The Hartman Group's 2009 multi-category study, Sustainability: The Rise of Consumer Responsibility. In focusing on the food and beverage market, this report draws on additional data from The Hartman Group's primary quantitative research. In addition, Packaged Facts provides an update of consumer attitudes and spending.

The Hartman Group Quantitative and Qualitative Methods

This report draws primarily on an online survey of 1,856 U.S. adults conducted in September 2008 by The Hartman Group to understand consumer attitudes and behaviors related to sustainability. The sample was drawn from a panel of adult U.S. consumers with Internet access, and was designed to provide good representation of the U.S. population according to geographic area, age, gender, race and income. The Hartman Group also conducted qualitative research on sustainability in three markets (Seattle, Dallas, and Columbus) during August 2008, using consumer ethnography with 50 consumers as the cornerstone of qualitative research. Ethnographic interviews included one-on-one conversations at an individual's home or at a specific retail setting, as well as group interviews also at consumers' homes. These engagements garnered more than 100 hours of in-depth, revelatory consumer discussion.

Content

Chapter 1: Methodology
- A Joint Publication of The Hartman Group and Packaged Facts
- The Hartman Group Quantitative and Qualitative Methods
- about The Hartman Group, Inc
- about Packaged Facts
Chapter 2: Sustainability & The American Consumer
- Establishing A Definition of Sustainability
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-1: What ""sustainability"" Means to Consumers
- Sustainability Concerns and Purchasing Decisions
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-2: Frequency of Purchase Decisions Based on Sustainability Concerns
- A Consumer-Based Model of Responsibility
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-3: The Four Zones of Sustainability
- Experiential Triggers
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-4: Triggers for Awareness
- Informational Triggers
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-5: Top Sources of Information on Sustainability
- The World of Sustainability: Core to Periphery
- List of Figures
- Figure 2-6: The World of Sustainability
- Motivations and Barriers to Purchase
- Convenience
- Price
- Expert Opinion
- Experience
- Knowledge
- List of Tables
- Table 2-1: Motivations and Barriers for Sustainable Purchases
Chapter 3: Foods, Beverages, & The Sustainability Consumer
- The Food Market and The Zones of Sustainability
- Personal Benefit Zone of Sustainability
- Environmental Zone of Sustainability
- Organic
- List of Figures
- Figure 3-1: Properties Associated with The Term ""organic""
- Local
- Gardening
- Vegetarianism
- Social Zone of Sustainability
- Local Satisfies Desire for Connection
- Humane Treatment of Animals
- Economic Zone of Sustainability
- Buying Local
- Fair Trade
- Product Adoption, Purchase Criteria, and Packaging Issues
- Product Adoption Patterns
- List of Figures
- Figure 3-2: Adoption of Sustainable Foods and Beverages
- Freshness Is Foremost
- Purchase Criteria
- List of Tables
- Table 3-1: Purchase Criteria for Sustainable Foods and Beverages
- Packaging Issues
- List of Tables
- Table 3-2: Dos and Don'ts for Sustainable Food and Beverage Packaging
- Quantitative Findings on Sustainable Food and Beverage Purchases
- List of Tables
- Table 3-3: General Food and Beverage Categories and Corresponding Sustainable Versions
- List of Figures
- Figure 3-3: Purchasing of Foods and Beverages (by Product Category: General Category vs. Sustainable Versions)
- Figure 3-4: Current Market Reach of Sustainable Food and Beverage Products (by Product Category)
- Figure 3-5: Current Market Reach and Immediate Growth Opportunity of Sustainable Food and Beverage Products (by Product Category)
- Figure 3-6: Willingness to Pay A Premium (20% More) for Sustainable Foods and Beverages (by Product Category)
Chapter 4: Summary and Key Insights
- Foods Are Central to Sustainability
- Tenets for Package Communications
Chapter 5: Market Update
- Responses to Economic Downturn
- Sustainability Convictions Largely Unchanged by Recession
- List of Tables
- Table 5-1: Recent Trends in Sustainability Psychographics: Opinions, Winter 2007/08 through Spring 2009
- Table 5-2: Recent Trends in Sustainability Psychographics: Behaviors, Winter 2007/08 through Spring 2009
- Consumers Remain Receptive to Organic and Natural Foods
- Table 5-3: Patterns for Agreement with Statement, ""when Shopping for Food, I Especially Look for Organic or Natural Foods,"" Winter 2007/08 through Spring 2009
- Table 5-4: Percent Agreeing with Selected Psychographic Statements on Natural or Organic Foods, February 2009 (U.S. Adults)
- Projected Market Growth
- Table 5-5: Projected U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Natural and Organic Foods and Beverages, 2009-2013
- Local and Bulk: beyond The Cpg Aisles