While the cost-of-living crisis initially drove a strong focus on prices, sustainability is now making a comeback. Results from our latest Grocery Eye study points to a significant change in consumer behaviour, revealing that sustainability is once again high on the agenda. But it’s clear that when it comes to sustainability, one size does not fit all.
Sustainability is back on the agenda: it can be difficult to navigate between shoppers’ positive attitudes and ‘claimed willingness’ to buy more sustainably. Shopper behaviours do not always match their good intentions. However the tide might be turning, albeit slowly, as shoppers take small steps to being more sustainable in the grocery aisles. This is driven by an increased interest from shoppers and increased activities from brands and retailers.
Capitalising on a desire for quality: in the short term, ‘affordable sustainability’, allows consumers to get more for their money and minimise waste. This will help drive engagement, especially at point of sale. But, we also see an opportunity to link sustainability to quality and other associated messages (such as freshness, locally sourced, minimally processed) to justify a potential price premium; as those are aspects shoppers are least likely to be willing to compromise on.
Education: a large group of consumers still feel disengaged and confused with messaging around sustainability. Being clear and direct with the consumer is the easiest way to get this message across, and there are some clear examples of brands starting to do this and disrupt the grocery space both at fixture and outside. Download the full report to find out more about these themes…
Download the full report
The Grocery Eye is a quarterly report produced by Savanta to track attitudes and behaviours in the grocery sector. It is based on the views of a nationally representative sample of 500 UK residents.
At Savanta, we work with our clients to help them grow their categories by navigating food & drink trends and identifying and leveraging key needs, decision drivers and influences at point of sale and beyond, from communications to NPD. If you are on a sustainability journey and believe research could help, why don’t you get in touch? We would be happy to advise you on how to leverage research to inform your sustainability strategy or the many tactics associated with it.
