Are consumers' attitudes regarding sustainability reflected on food choices? Evidence from a Discrete Choice Experiment in 10 European countries

Abstract

[ES] Evaluamos si los consumidores reflejan sus actitudes hacia la sostenibilidad en sus decisiones de compra. Para ello realizamos una encuesta en línea a 20.000 consumidores en 10 países europeos sobre motivos de compra, elementos del envase que comunican diferencias en sostenibilidad y decisiones de compra. Demostramos que los motivos de compra se trasladan a las decisiones de compra, aunque de manera divergente para los componentes de salud y medio ambiente de la sostenibilidad. Los resultados pueden ser utilizados para entender la divergencia entre actitudes y decisiones de compra y desarrollar estrategias y políticas para promover un consumo más sostenible.

[EN] We assess whether consumers' attitudes towards sustainability are reflected in their food choices. Using an online survey, we elicit from 20,000 consumers in ten European countries the main motives when purchasing food, front-of-pack elements that signal differences in sustainability and purchase decisions. At the aggregated level, our results show that self-declared purchase motives translate into consumer choices, albeit in a divergent manner for the health and environmental components of sustainability. The findings can help policymakers and businesses to learn about the gap between attitudes and purchase behaviour and help them develop appropriate policies and strategies to promote sustainable food purchases.