Do Sustainable Consumers Have Sustainable Behaviors? An Empirical Study to Understand the Purchase of Food Products

Abstract

Sustainability and the circular economy (CE) are issues of increasing interest to governments, investors, industry, and civil society; for this reason, the implementation of a business model for circularity and/or sustainability is becoming crucial for achieving and maintaining a competitive advantage for various organizations. In this context, consumers play a crucial role in reducing the environmental impact of business processes through their choices and behaviors. “Sustainable consumption” is a growing global concern that will link human behavior with the planet’s future. Negligent behavior by individuals in their daily lives has a significant impact on the environment, with devastating consequences for the survival of humankind itself. However, even though sustainability issues and the circular economy have now widely involved consumers, making them seem aware of how the behavioral ran has a direct impact on the environment, the percentage of people who accompany this awareness with truly sustainable behavior and who are therefore willing to embrace the goal of “saving the planet” is small. Therefore, this study hypothesizes that from a sample of consumers with a particular interest in environmental and sustainability issues, there are subsamples of consumers who show a particular interest in adopting sustainable purchasing behavior regarding food products. Our analysis adds essential results to the existing literature by using a methodology that can improve the homogeneity of a sustainable consumer dataset to assess consumer behavior. Through cluster analysis, one of the most widely used techniques, it is possible to extract a sub-sample of consumers with conceptions on environmental and sustainability issues that may influence their awareness of buying sustainable food products. The results show the presence of four different consumer clusters, Some consumers are sustainability and environmentally aware, other consumers are indifferent to environmental issues, and finally, some consumers show minimal attention to sustainability but little involvement in activities. The study shows that attention to environmental sustainability has clear policy and managerial and scientific implications that can increase consumer awareness.

Factors Influencing Green Purchase Intention Among Consumers in Mongolia

“…In contrast, impulsive or unplanned purchases can lead to considerable environmental harm. This underlines the significant environmental impact associated with consumer behavior (Gallo et al, 2023).…”

Characterizing the US Market for Salad Mixes through the Lens of Environmental Preferences

“…Jones et al (2016) studied proenvironmental indicators such as water, land, and energy use, as well as greenhouse gas emissions. Gallo et al (2023) found that the growing consumer concern about the environmental impact of water and energy usage in food production emphasizes the need for information regarding product labeling and marketing strategies. Rani et al (2019) investigated water use efficiency and proposed key measures for producers to adopt sustainable practices and meet the growing consumer demand for water-friendly products.…”

Actitudes y percepción de los consumidores hacia miel de origen local

“…Por ejemplo, De-Magistris y López-Galán (2021), segmentaron su muestra en tres grupos según la percepción, las actitudes hacia la miel y diferentes estilos de vida, encontrando un grupo más concienciado por el medioambiente, la nutrición y la salud, otro más centrado en el precio y otro intermedio. Annunziata y Mariani (2018) también clasificaron su muestra en diferentes segmentos de consumidores con diferentes percepciones de sostenibilidad, alimentos orgánicos y locales; y Gallo et al (2023) propusieron tres grupos de consumidores, unos más concienciados con la sostenibilidad y el medio am-biente y que están más dispuestos a adoptar elecciones de compra sostenibles, otros indiferentes a las cuestiones medioambientales y, por último, algunos consumidores con una atención mínima a la sostenibilidad.…”

“…Diversos estudios han analizado la relación entre el comportamiento sostenible en la vida diaria y la preferencia de los consumidores por los alimentos locales (Bimbo et al, 2020); al mismo tiempo se ha demostrado que los consumidores consideran los alimentos orgánicos y locales como alternativas sostenibles (Annunziata y Mariani, 2018). Los consumidores más concienciados con el medioambiente son los que trasladan esta inquietud al comportamiento de compra y eligen productos más sostenibles (Gallo et al, 2023). Por ello en este trabajo se ha recogido información sobre los hábitos de comportamiento sostenibles de los consumidores y se han puesto en relación con la percepción hacia la miel local.…”