Consumer Buying Trends for Sustainable Products | Deloitte US

Deloitte’s report, Unpacking the Sustainability Dilemma: How Consumer Values Become Choices, coauthored with the Ad Council, examines why many consumers struggle to align their sustainability values with actual purchase behaviors, particularly in grocery shopping. It offers key insights on consumer motivations and barriers, along with strategies for brands to build trust and inspire meaningful changes in purchasing patterns.

Key Insights into Consumer Behavior

Personal Interest Dominates Purchase Decisions

Consumers prioritize personal benefits such as taste, value, and quality above sustainability. Sustainability gains importance mostly when connected to personal or family health. This underscores a prevailing “me-first” mindset even among those who value environmental concerns.

Price Remains a Critical Barrier

Despite positive attitudes towards sustainability, high prices deter many shoppers. Price often trumps brand loyalty or environmental attributes when consumers decide what to buy. While discounts or coupons that lower prices to match non-sustainable alternatives can motivate purchases, consumers may also view drastic price cuts with skepticism, perceiving them as compromising sustainability claims.

Defining Sustainability: What Consumers Want to Hear

• Consumers associate sustainability mainly with products that minimize environmental harm and provide benefits to people and communities.
• Preferred sustainability signals include terms like “best option for the environment,” “eco-friendly,” “natural ingredients,” “carbon neutral certified,” and “organic.”
• Product qualities such as taste, value, quality, price, or company size are less commonly linked to sustainability by consumers.

The Persistent “Say-Do” Gap

• There remains a large gap between consumers’ stated intentions to buy sustainable products and their actual purchases.
• Increased purchases of sustainable foods are mostly limited to select categories and are primarily driven by health motivations.
• Price constraints continue to restrict wider adoption.
• Brands are encouraged to emphasize product benefits related to personal health, environmental impact, and affordability (“value”) to close this gap.

Building Consumer Trust: The New Currency in Sustainability

• Trust is a critical determinant of consumer willingness to pay more for sustainable products.
• Authentic brand commitment and transparent communication about sustainability efforts foster trust.
• Practical actions for brands to build trust include investing in genuinely sustainable production and clearly demonstrating positive environmental and social impacts.

Summary for Brands and Marketers

To effectively market sustainable products in today’s environment, brands should:

• Recognize that personal benefit and price considerations dominate consumer choices.
• Position sustainability messaging around health benefits and tangible environmental impact.
• Use pricing strategies that balance affordability with perceived sustainability value.
• Prioritize building authentic trust through transparency and demonstrated commitment to sustainability.

By addressing these factors, brands can better bridge the gap between consumer values and purchase behaviors, promoting meaningful progress in sustainable consumerism.

For more detailed insights, the full Deloitte report explores these themes and offers practical strategic recommendations to close the sustainability intention-action gap.

Design Delight Studio curates high-impact, authoritative insights into sustainable and organic product trends, helping conscious consumers and innovative brands stay ahead in a fast-evolving green economy.