2020 STATE OF SUSTAINABILITY IN AMERICA 18th Annual Consumer Insights & Trends Report
122 pages/slides of current consumer insights with data and analysis, including charts, graphs, illustrations!
Site License: Includes PDF, PPT with access to charts and site rights for internal network usage across one company BRAND/location.
Price: $12,500 Order Report
OVERVIEW INTRODUCTION
10 years ago, Natural Marketing Institute research showed evidence that consumers exhibited a hierarchy where "in me" was the most important aspect of living a healthy lifestyle, followed by "on me" and then "around me"
- It appears we are at a pivotal point where “around me” is gaining ground in the hierarchy
- We see this movement of “around me” picking up steam across categories, personal behavior and corporate initiatives
18 Years of Sustainability Marketplace Insights
This report is the eighteenth annual U.S. report Natural Marketing Institute has published on the state of the sustainability market. This research uncovers insights into how today’s consumer integrates eco-friendliness into their daily life and reveals their motivations and the challenges they encounter in their pursuit to become increasingly aligned with a more sustainable lifestyle.
Consumers are displaying an increasing understanding of the breadth of sustainability issues, the vernacular that comes with the space, and an eagerness to incorporate it into their lives. In addition, in this year’s research we are finding a heightened awareness and concern over the health of the planet which appear to be causing shifts in consumer attitudes. Instead of adopting environmentally-friendly behaviors for more self-directed health benefits, consumers are looking outward to the environment around them and realizing they have to take a bigger part in fixing the ills that are disrupting planetary health.
This report provides a comprehensive overview of where the current sustainable marketplace stands. It is this knowledge and insight that provide the basis for identifying and uncovering opportunities in the sustainability marketplace.
In addition, the report includes...
- How segments within society view sustainability differently and what motivates this differentiation
- Consumer insights regarding the health of the planet and what issues resonate most
- Consumer alignment with ethical eating
- How the iGen generation views the environment and sustainability
- New ways to reach and impact the new breed of ethical consumers
- Actual quotes from consumers and what they feel the country should do to be more sustainable
- ...And much more
TABLE OF CONTENTS
U.S. SUSTAINABILITY CONSUMER TRENDS DATABASE OVERVIEW
DEFINITIONS OF GROUPS
INTRODUCTION
OVERVIEW: TRENDS IN SUSTAINABILITY
NATURAL MARKETING INSTITUTE'S SUSTAINABILITY SEGMENTATION
Sustainability Segmentation Overview
Sustainability Segmentation Model Methodology
Five Distinct Sustainability Segments
LOHAS Consumer as Environmental Steward
Sustainability Path to Purchase
Sustainable Mainstream Overview
Shifts in Segment Composition
Leader and Followers Profile
Early Adoption among Leaders and Followers
Personal Sacrifice for E-Protection among Leaders and Followers
Differentiating Attitudes among Leaders and Followers
The LOHAS Consumer Profile
The NATURALITES Consumer Profile
The DRIFTERS Consumer Profile
The CONVENTIONALS Consumer Profile
The UNCONCERNEDS Consumer Profile
Demographic Summary Across Segments
CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT
Views on Consumer Engagement
Personal Responsibility for the Environment
Importance of Living Sustainably
Impact of Sustainability on Purchase Decisions
Growth of Environmental Concerns
Personal Sacrifice for E-Protection among Generations
Self Perceptions of Being "Green" and "E-informed"
Participation in Sustainable Behaviors
Minimizing Personal Impact on Global Warming Trended
Consternation Regarding Environmental Involvement
Perceived Leaders in Environmental Protection
Perception of Which Groups Need to Do More
Trust in Groups to Protect the Environment
PLANETARY HEALTH
Views on Planetary Health
Ratings of Aspects of the Environment
Concern for Global Warming
Perceived Causes of Global Warming
Perceptions of Decreasing Biodiversity
Consumers' Environmental Concerns
Perceived Causes of Decreasing Biodiversity
Perceptions of the Toxin - Disease State Connection
Concern Regarding Water
Consumer Perspective of Issues Which May Destroy the Planet
Concern over Earth's Ability to Sustain Life
PLASTIC, PACKAGING AND RECYCLING
Views on Plastic, Packaging and Recycling
Environmental Impact of Product Life Cycle Stage
Recycling Frequency
Attitudes about Over Packaging
Attitudes about Packaging Used for Shipping
Skepticism Regarding Recycling
Environmental Friendliness of Specific Materials
Environmental Friendliness of Convenience Plastic
Concern Regarding Plastic in the Ocean
Interest in Companies' Stance on Plastic
Preference for Non-Plastic Alternative Packaging
Consumer Desire for Less Plastic Use at Stores They Shop
Interest in "Refill" Stores
Preference for Less Plastic at Fast Food and Convenience Stores
CONSUMER PACKAGED GOODS
Views on E-Friendly Consumer Packaged Goods
Consumer Preference for Sustainable Purchases
Preference for Sustainable Purchases by Generation
Parameters of Quality, Convenience and Price Toward E-Friendly Purchase
Barriers to Environmental Purchases
Concern about Chemicals in Consumer Products
Concern about Chemicals Contaminating Waterways
Interest in Environmentally-Friendly Versions of Various Categories
Monitoring for Chemicals on Labels
Chemical Monitoring by Category Users
Importance Ratings of Household Cleaning Product Attributes
Growth in Importance of Household Cleaning Product Attributes
Willingness to Pay a Premium for Household Cleaning Product Attributes
Awareness of Unsustainable Sourcing by Tissue Brands
Importance Ratings of Personal Care Product Attributes
Growth in Importance of Personal Care Product Attributes
Willingness to Pay a Premium for Personal Care Product Attributes
Willingness to Pay 20% More for Sustainable Products
ETHICAL EATING
Views on Ethical Eating
Trended Product Launches with an Ethical Claim
Ethical Food Choices
Increased Use of Ethical Foods
Willingness to Pay a Premium for Ethical Food
Growth in Importance of Ethical Food Claims
Preference for Sustainable and Regenerative Agriculture
Avoidance of Toxins
Belief in Organic Food Attributes
Reasons for Meat Reduction
Meat Reduction for Environmental and Humane Reasons
Growing Importance of Humane Animal Treatment
Interest in Lab-Grown Meat
Efforts to Eat More Plant-Based Protein
Positive Perceptions of Plant-Based Protein
Consumer Desire for Sustainable Shopping Experience
INFLUENCING YOUR CONSUMER
Views on Companies' and Corporations' Role in Sustainability
Importance of a Company's Sustainable Platform
Interest in a Company's Social and Environmental Initiatives
Skepticism of Companies' Environmental Initiatives
Consumer Actions to Determine Companies' Environmental Initiatives
Value of Certifications and Seals
Growth in Recognition and Impact of Seals
Sources of Influence on Sustainable Purchase
Impact of a Company's Sustainability Initiatives
Skepticism of Green Labeling
Say-Do Gap Understanding
How to Successfully Communicate to Your Target
Consumer segments in the general population exhibit various shades of ‘green’ based on their levels of environmental and sustainable engagement. While some consumers have ‘deep green’ consciousness, there are varying levels among consumers within the American population.
The consumer segment within the population which is considered the ‘greenest’ segment is the LOHAS (Lifestyles Of Health And Sustainability) consumer who is integral in helping to drive sustainability into the mainstream. Other segments within the population also hold ‘green’ attitudes and participate in ‘green’ behaviors but their motivations are differentiated.
By understanding the consumer segment’s orientation, organizations are better equipped to determine how to target the most optimal segment with the most relevant marketing strategies.
SUSTAINABILITY SEGMENTATION MODEL METHODOLOGY
Development of Natural Marketing Institute's unique and proprietary segmentation model began with evaluating over 170 different attitudinal and behavioral variables, later narrowed to approximately 15. A k-means clustering method was used. Cluster centers were defined as dense regions in the multivariate space based on a k-means segmentation of the attitudinal variables from Natural Marketing Institute's Sustainability Consumer Trends Database survey.
This segmentation can be used to identify and predict segment membership as part of a quantitative extrapolative analysis of future consumer behavior.
5 Unique Segments: each segment is mutually exclusive and is designed to have the maximum differentiation between consumer groups and the maximum homogeneity within each consumer group. The predictive accuracy is high at 86%.
The segmentation has been overlaid on third-party data sets such as Nielsen’s Homescan and can be used through Natural Marketing Institute in custom/primary qualitative or quantitative research.
DEFINITIONS OF GROUPS WITHIN THE REPORT
GP – General Population U.S. Adults 18+
iGen – born 1998 – 2001 (Ages 18-21)
Millennials – born 1977-1997 (Ages 22-42)
Young Millennials – born 1991-1997 (Ages 22-28)
Older Millennials – born 1977-1990 (Ages 29-42)
Gen X – born 1965-1976 (Ages 43-54)
Boomers – born 1946-1964 (Ages 55-73)
Matures – born 1900-1945 (Ages 74+)
E-friendly Lawn – Purchased environmentally-friendly lawn/garden products in past 12 months
E-friendly Baby – Purchased Environmentally-friendly baby wipes/diapers in past 12 months
GMO-free F/B – Purchased GMO-free foods/beverages in the past 3 months
Org F/B – Purchased organic foods/beverages in the past 3 months
Natural/Org PC – Used natural/organic personal care products in past 6 months
Plant-based dairy – Purchased plant-based dairy products in the past 3 months
Natural HH Cleaning/Laundry Prod – Purchased natural household cleaning or laundry products in past 12 months
Statistically Significant Differences: Throughout this report, statistically significant differences between mutually exclusive consumer segments (using t-tests) are identified with capital letters. These tests are conducted at the 95% confidence level.
Indices: Indices are used throughout this report to compare consumer groups. An index is useful for the purpose of quick comparison and is a ratio of one piece of data to another. For example, if 22% of Consumer Group A use CFL’s, and 60% of Consumer Group B use CFL’s, then the index of Consumer Group A to Consumer Group B is: (60/22) x 100 = 272, which means that Consumer Group B is roughly 2¾ times more likely to use CFL’s than is Group A.
U.S. SUSTAINABILITY CONSUMER TRENDS DATABASE® (SCTD) OVERVIEW
Scope:
- Quantifies the size of the consumer market for environmentally and socially responsible products and services
- Measures the importance of environmental and societal issues as well as corporate social responsibility
- Explores environmentally conscious behavior
- Determines consumer usage of sustainable products and services and quantifies purchase criteria
- Annual tracking study in U.S. since 2002 and globally since 2005
Report Methodology:
- 3,000 U.S. adults in 2019, nationally projectable to the U.S. adult population and accurate at the 95% confidence level to +/- 1.2%
- Conducted online 4th Qtr. 2019
- Report released March 2020
Natural Marketing Institute Databases:
- U.S. Trending since 2002 and Globally since 2005
- Conducted in 23 countries; 150,000+ global consumers interviewed
For more information, kindly contact Steve French.