Sustainable Food and Drink - US - August 2010

About this report

The sustainable food and drink market in many ways is still in its infancy. As a food movement that began decades ago simply to offer a small segment of consumers all natural and organic products, it has now developed into a multi-billion dollar platform that crosses many industries beyond agriculture.

And well it should, considering that the vast majority of consumers (84%) have purchased sustainable food and drink in the past month. It's likely that more are actually buying products unknowingly—for the moment. Consider the fact that a consumer buying Starbucks coffee, whether at a Starbucks outlet, the supermarket, airport, or otherwise, may in fact be buying certified organic, Fair Trade coffee without reading the label carefully.

This report, the first of its kind offered from Mintel, delves into consumer behavior toward green and sustainable products with a particular focus on sustainable food and drink. Based on Mintel’s exclusive survey, the consumer sections make up the bulk of this report and capture information critical to manufacturers and retailers alike including:

* Which product or packaging claims resonate most with consumers
* What drivers and deterrents are at play in purchase decisions
* The types of food and drink that consumers are buying, by sustainable claim
* An in-depth focus on specific sustainable food and drink products that have come to market and consumer interest in these products, as well as willingness to purchase
* Attitudes of consumers toward eco-friendly and sustainable products, segmented by food lifestyle
* What select retailers and manufacturers are currently doing in terms of a sustainability platform, their end goals, challenges and successes
* What’s driving the market forward, from new product innovations, to food safety scares
* What’s slowing the market down, from reactive innovating that may be “too little, too late,” to increasing confusion even among current users of sustainable food and drink

Table of contents

Scope and Themes
What you need to know
Other useful Mintel reports
Definition
Data sources
Consumer data
Advertising clips
Abbreviations and terms
Abbreviations
Terms
Executive Summary
Green population hasn’t shifted much during recession
Retailer and manufacturer activity in sustainability
Retailers
Manufacturers
The sustainable food and drink consumer
Purchase behavior with product and packaging sustainability claims
Purchase drivers and deterrents
All natural, organic, local, and Fair Trade claims lead sustainable food and drink purchases
Passionate foodies are primary users of sustainable food and drink
Market Drivers
The green population hasn’t changed much in nearly four years
Figure 3: Green shopping segments, August 2006-January 2010
Meanwhile, lack of green awareness and green confusion underscore the hurdles the market faces
Food scares help the sustainable food and drink market
Reaction, rather than pro-action may hamper the market
Competitive Context
Consumers prioritize value and quality over sustainability
Retailer Activity in Sustainability
Key points
Overview
Figure 4: Where do people buy, and where do people buy the majority of their organic food and beverages?, September 2009
Walmart is a leader but is currently doing it covertly
Whole Foods Market
Recent sustainable efforts
Other retailers are also focusing on sustainable seafood
Manufacturer Activity in Sustainability
Key points
The importance of a sustainability platform
Innovating inside and out
Figure 5: “Tomorrow’s Value Rating” of 10 largest food and beverage companies, 2010
Company profiles
Unilever
Groupe Danone
Innovations and Innovators
Key points
Particularly strong 2008-09 drive new innovation growth over last five years
Sustainable food and drink product launches 2005-10
Figure 6: New sustainable food and drink product launches, by category, 2005-10
Sustainable claims dominated by those that indicate purity
Figure 7: Top 20 sustainable food and drink product claims, 2005-10
Retailer brands lead the pack in sustainability claims
Figure 8: Top five companies/top three brands of sustainable food and drink product claims, 2005-10
Product innovations
Backlash fuels new designs and upcycling
Recent sustainable food and drink innovations and label claims
Advertising and Promotion
Relying on websites to fill in the blanks may be ineffective
Social media are also a backlash breeding ground
Recent television ads
SunChips ads highlight the bag, not the snack
Figure 9: SunChips Bag brings itself out of the trash bin to the compost pile, television ad, 2010
Figure 10: SunChips People hold pictures to conceal trash, television ad, 2010
Starbucks encourages greenness with free product
Figure 11: Starbucks People trade in cups for mugs creating tree & forest design, television ad, 2010
The Impact of Sustainability Claims on Purchase Behavior
Key points
First things first…consumers are speculative at best
General frequency of purchase of green/sustainable products
Figure 12: Green or sustainable product purchase frequency, by gender, age and household income, May/June 2010
Impact of sustainable product claims on purchase decision
Overall
Figure 13: Impact of sustainable product claims on purchase decision, May/June 2010
Among current purchasers of sustainable products
Figure 14: Impact of sustainable product claims on purchase decision among current purchasers, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 15: Impact of sustainable product claims on purchase decision among current purchasers, by household income, May/June 2010
Among non-purchasers of sustainable products
Figure 16: Sustainable product claim awareness among non-purchasers, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 17: Sustainable product claim awareness among non-purchasers, by household income, May/June 2010
Impact of sustainable packaging claims on purchase decision
Overall
Figure 18: Impact of sustainable packaging claims on purchase decision, May/June 2010
Among current purchasers of sustainable products
Figure 19: Impact of sustainable packaging claims on purchase decision among current purchasers, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 20: Impact of sustainable packaging claims on purchase decision among current purchasers, by household income, May/June 2010
Among non-purchasers of sustainable products
Figure 21: Sustainable packaging claim awareness among non-purchasers, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 22: Sustainable packaging claim awareness among non-purchasers, by household income, May/June 2010
Purchase Drivers and Deterrents With Sustainable Products
Key points
Drivers for sustainable product purchases
By product claims
Figure 23: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by gender, May/June 2010
Figure 24: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 25: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by household income, May/June 2010
By packaging claims
Figure 26: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by gender, May/June 2010
Figure 27: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by age, May/June 2010
Figure 28: Drivers for sustainable product purchases, by household income, May/June 2010
Deterrents for sustainable product purchases
By product claims
Figure 29: Deterrents for sustainable product purchases, May/June 2010
By packaging claims
Figure 30: Deterrents for sustainable product purchases, May/June 2010
Types of Sustainable Food and Drink Purchased
Key points
By product claim
Overview
Figure 31: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased, by product claim, May/June 2010
Over-indexing users of sustainable food and drink, by product claim
Fair Trade
Figure 32: Types of Fair Trade food and drink purchased, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Organic
Figure 33: Types of organic food and drink purchased, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
All natural
Figure 34: Types of all natural food and drink purchased, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Local
Figure 35: Types of local food and drink purchased, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Reduced carbon footprint/emissions
Figure 36: Types of food and drink purchased with reduced carbon footprint/emissions claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Made with energy from solar or wind power
Figure 37: Types of food and drink purchased with made with energy from solar or wind power claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
By packaging claim
Overview
Figure 38: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased, by packaging claim, May/June 2010
Over-indexing users of sustainable food and drink, by packaging claim
Packaging made from recycled materials
Figure 39: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with made from recycled materials claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Recyclable
Figure 40: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with recyclable claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Biodegradable/compostable
Figure 41: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with biodegradable/compostable claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Sustainable forestry
Figure 42: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with sustainable forestry claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Lightweight/reduced/minimal packaging
Figure 43: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with lightweight/reduced/minimal packaging claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Eco- or environmentally friendly
Figure 44: Types of sustainable food and drink purchased with eco- or environmentally friendly claim, by top over-indexing users, May/June 2010
Product Study: Consumer Interest in Select Sustainable Food and Drink
Good value, then eco-friendliness influence trial
Methodology
Example 1: Domino Premium Pure Cane Granulated Sugar
Figure 45: Domino Premium Pure Cane Granulated Sugar, May/June 2010
Example 2: Starbucks Coffee From the Forest, for the Planet Whole Bean Coffee
Figure 46: Starbucks Coffee From the Forest, for the Planet Whole Bean Coffee, May/June 2010
Example 3: EarthGrains Eco-Grain 7-Grain Bread
Figure 47: EarthGrains Eco-Grain 7-Grain Bread, May/June 2010
Example 4: SunChips Garden Salsa Flavored Multi Grain Snack
Figure 48: SunChips Garden Salsa Flavored Multi Grain Snack, May/June 2010
Example 5: Traidcraft Geobar Fair Trade Raisin and Chocolate Cereal Bars
Figure 49: Traidcraft Geobar Fair Trade Raisin and Chocolate Cereal Bars, May/June 2010
Example 6: Waitrose Select Farm Semi-Skimmed Milk
Figure 50: Waitrose Select Farm Semi-Skimmed Milk, May/June 2010
Attitudes and Behavior Among Consumers of Differing Food Lifestyles
Key points
Organic milk and produce usage
Figure 51: Organic milk and produce usage, by food lifestyle segments, November 2008-December 2009
Attitudes toward diet, health, and food
Figure 52: Attitudes toward diet, health, and food, by food lifestyle segments, November 2008-December 2009
Attitudes toward the environment
Figure 53: Attitudes toward the environment, by food lifestyle segments, November 2008-December 2009
Appendix: Trade Associations

Tweet

Related research categories

By sector: General drinks

By market: United States (in North America)