Climate change, air quality and plastic are top consumer concerns, study shows

The current turmoil around the world – whether the war in Ukraine, food shortages, heat waves, droughts, or the rising cost of living – means it is critical that consumers see transitioning to clean energy and resilient, responsibly-sourced resources as a cost-saving exercise. 

This means one that delivers stability, security and wellbeing, says the market research consultancy Mintel on publication of its 2022 Sustainability Barometer.

Analysing responses from 16,000 consumers in 16 countries, the report is one of the biggest and broadest sustainability surveys conducted. It provides assessments of how consumers are feeling, and their behaviours and actions, along with a mapping exercise between consumer activity and the UN sustainable development goals, and an analysis of how sustainability should shape business.

The climate crisis, air quality and plastic production are the issues most people rate of most concern. Chemicals in the environment, biodiversity on land and in the sea are ranked of lowest concern. 

Picking a couple of examples from the report, it seems consumers are supportive of many political issues at the heart of the climate crisis, for example, they want to see conservation, foreign aid and emissions reduction prioritised, while carbon offsetting is less popular.

Just over 60% of consumers believe countries importing products from third countries should take responsibility for the emissions related to growing or manufacturing those products throughout their supply chain. 

Other areas indicate variations around the world. For example, the number of people believing that they can have a personal impact on the environment is rising in some countries, including Brazil, the US, Australia and France, however, in other countries, such as Canada, China, South Korea and the UK, it has fallen.

The three most common sustainability activities people say they do are:

• Recycling packaging. 
• Planning meals at home to avoid wasting food. 
• Buying fewer new clothes.

The three least common are:

• Limiting or reducing the amount of seafood eaten. 
• Switching to renewable electricity or gas suppliers. 
• Hiring or leasing products instead of buying them.

Mintel’s ‘coffee index’, which digs deeper into consumer purchasing considerations relating to coffee, indicates that consumer attitudes towards sustainability mean they will not forfeit quality, convenience or value for environmental or social issues (68% agreed with this statement). 

It also shows that in general people want convenience, with businesses taking responsibility to curate sustainability across their products and services (64%). Some 54% of people find statistics about environmental or social problems depressing.