Ensuring Sustainable Production and Consumption Patterns Essay

Introduction

Developed and ratified by all United Nations (UN) member states, sustainable development goals (SDGs) were formulated to develop a prosperous future for all, by transforming the world through the accomplishment of 17 SDGs (Frey and MacNaughton, 2016). Primarily, they focus on the eradication of poverty, inequality and hunger (Kumi, 2019). Additionally, they are geared towards promoting innovation, good health, partnerships and peace by developing sustainable cities, promoting responsible consumption, improving climate action, advancing quality education, gender equality and increasing the availability of clean water, energy and decent work (Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). To achieve these goals, member states need to take decisive actions to influence human behaviour and align them with the aforementioned goals. The importance of sustainability in promoting their achievement is outlined as the 12th SDG – promotion of sustainable consumption and production (Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019).

Sustainable development and consumption emerged from the need to promote efficiency in resource and energy use around the world (Bauer, Watson and Gylling, 2018). This is particularly true for the food industry, which is critical in sustaining human populations and societies. Furthermore, it is one of the largest economic sectors in the world, spanning different subsectors, including agriculture, manufacturing, marketing, recycling and water resource management (Hülsmann and Ardakanian, 2018). The food industry is also one of the most consequential industries, accounting for at least 25% of the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) (Ikram et al., 2020). These statistics explain its justification for use in this study as the main basis for evaluating how to promote sustainable production and consumption patterns through consumer behaviour. Furthermore, the justification for basing this analysis on the food sector stems from increased concerns among governments and consumers regarding the environmental impact of production and food safety issues owing to the impact of the business practices adopted by multinationals in different parts of the world. Therefore, major corporations in the food industry, such as Coca Cola and KFC, have taken proactive measures to address the environmental, social and economic impact of their practices (Ikram et al., 2020). Particularly, these measures have been geared towards promoting sustainable production and consumption.

Consumers play an important role in promoting sustainable production and consumption because they are responsible for determining how products are used and disposed (Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). Similarly, they exercise the right to buy or shun products based on their environmental or sustainability records (Ramutsindela and Mickler, 2019; Schönherr and Martinuzzi, 2019). Therefore, subject to the integral role played by consumers in promoting sustainable consumption and the achievement of the 12^th SDG, it is vital to understand how their attitudes could help promote responsible consumption and production. The food industry will be used as the main premise for undertaking the present study.

This paper is structured into five key sections. The first one outlines the background of the study, its aim and structure. The second section describes the implications of consumer attitudes on purchasing behaviours, while the third part contains details regarding how marketers could use prevailing consumer attitudes to influence consumer behaviour. The last section summarises key findings. Following this structure of review, an analysis of consumer attitudes towards responsible consumption and production is provided below.

Consumer Attitudes

In recent literature, the concept of environmental conservation has been redefined to integrate aspects of economic, social and environmental development (Hunter-Jones and Warnaby, 2017). As the guiding principle in many societies, the three tenets of societal development highlighted above have been linked to the realisation of sustainable development goals. In some societies, sustainable development is not a luxury that people could choose to implement, or not; instead, it is a necessity that has to be respected as a critical part of human survival.

Over the last couple of years, there have been significant changes in consumer attitudes towards environmental sustainability (Tapia-Fonllem et al., 2017). Stamer (2018) defines consumer attitudes as people’s choice to either like or dislike a specific brand, product or service. Those who hold a positive view are likely to make a purchase, while those who harbour a negative opinion may refrain from buying it (Hunter-Jones and Warnaby, 2017). These behaviours stem from changing consumer attitudes, which are products of people’s beliefs and feelings towards a good or service (Meuleman, Lubbers and Verkuyten, 2018). Therefore, the modern consumer is concerned about a product’s history and implications on environment, health and societal wellbeing (Tapia-Fonllem et al., 2017; Stamer, 2018). Consequently, most companies have been forced to be more conscious of the environment and mindful of the implications of their practices on society.

Researchers suggest that some consumers face a dilemma regarding whether to support SDGs, or not, depending on their understanding of the need for sustainable development (Meuleman, Lubbers and Verkuyten, 2018; Bhat, Darzi and Parrey, 2018; Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). The debate is a product of the perception that the benefits of sustainability can only be realised in the future, thereby leaving no real incentive for the consumer in the short-term (Atieno and Njoroge, 2018). This view has partly informed the need to investigate consumer attitudes towards promoting sustainable purchasing behaviour, vis-à-vis changing consumer attitudes (Peighambari et al., 2016). For example, the study by Chung et al. (2018) suggests that many consumers seek to satisfy their personal preferences at the expense of brands that have a “sustainable” theme. This preference has been observed through investigations, which have shown consumers choosing favourite brands as opposed to “green” products (Bhat, Darzi and Parrey, 2018). Nonetheless, new evidence suggests that this practice may slowly change as consumers become more aware of the need to adopt environmentally conservative practices (Atieno and Njoroge, 2018). This vision will be realised when high-quality products that align with consumers’ idea of environmental and sustainable development are preferred to those that do not fit the same description.

Implications of Consumer Attitudes on Purchasing Behaviours

Consumer attitudes affect purchasing behaviours because the latter is a product of people’s feelings and values. Relative to this assertion, a report by Tapia-Fonllem et al. (2017) suggests that environmentally conscious consumers may develop a culture of sustainability, which allows them to stay loyal to companies that integrate the concept in their management practices. Studies also show that there is an increased awareness among different sections of the society about the need to protect the environment by influencing purchasing decisions (Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). Consequently, there is a declining gap in awareness among buyers from developed and developing countries regarding the need to adopt environmentally conservative practices in production (Henriksen and Seabrooke, 2016).

The cognitive dissonance theory could explain the link between consumer attitudes and purchasing behaviours because it suggests that people’s thought processes offset the dissonance associated with making a purchase (Morvan and O’Connor, 2017). For example, researchers have established a link between consumer attitudes towards environmental conservation/sustainability and the popularity of whole foods in the consumer market (Henriksen and Seabrooke, 2016; Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). Relative to this view, Faber (2019) says the demand for sustainable production is slowly outstripping supply as people become more conscious of the food they consume and buy products that align with this knowledge. Consequently, the global demand for foods that have been produced sustainably has been increasing by nearly 20% annually (Faber, 2019). The link between consumers’ attitudes, their cognitive behaviours and patterns of consumption can be traced to increased consumer awareness of the relationship between the environment, food and human health. Therefore, the choice or cognitive decisions made by consumers to purchase sustainable products or services help to address the dissonance – behaviour incongruity.

Another example demonstrating the relationship between people’s consumer attitudes and purchasing behaviours is the increased demand for transparency in the management of corporate affairs in the food sector (McCarthy, 2016). Particularly, this pressure has been piled on multinational companies, which are increasingly under pressure to be environmentally friendly. Similarly, there is a trend in the agricultural sector to adopt sustainable farming practices that maximise productivity and reduce environmental damage. Such is the case in the United States (US) where farmers are adopting sustainable farming practices, such as planting cover crops, reducing tillage, rotating crops, applying integrated pest management, adopting agroforestry practices, and managing whole systems and landscapes to improve sustainability in the agriculture industry (Union of Concerned Scientists, 2017).

The growing preference for vegetarianism among some consumers is also deemed one of the strategies for reducing the environmental impact of the food industry (Eswaran, 2018). Stated differently, the reliance on plant-based food is considered an alternative to minimising the effects of the resource-intensive processes used to produce, preserve and distribute non-vegetarian foods. These arguments stem from commonly held views that the use of animals to provide food and clothing is unnecessary and unsustainable for many economies (Eswaran, 2018). For example, the World Health Organization estimates that about 30% of arable land is used to rear livestock for food production (Eswaran, 2018). These animals often have a negative impact on the environment through overgrazing and biodiversity loss. A shift in consumer attitudes towards the consumption of a plant-based diet helps to alleviate this environmental pressure. Consequently, vegetarianism is increasingly being adopted as a more sustainable way of consumption. In this regard, changing consumer attitudes are promoting sustainability.

Implications of Information on Marketers

Insights on consumer attitudes and behaviours towards consumption are critical to marketers because they help to understand how consumers think. Similarly, they assist marketers to comprehend why they would choose one product over another, or switch from one brand to the next. Consequently, they would be better able to adapt to changing consumer attitudes and tastes regarding product development.

The insights provided in this document show that consumers are increasingly adopting plant-based diets and demanding for the adoption of more transparent and environmentally responsible business practices. These changing preferences about consumption and governance in the food industry could be met when marketers highlight the “green” properties of their products or services to consumers and empower them in making informed choices about their purchasing behaviours. They can do so by highlighting the positive properties of the products, relative to their sustainability appeal. In other words, they need to develop a “green” corporate perception for their products or services among their target audience. Such a marketing strategy should be enhanced and adopted because of its benefit to companies with a strong link between their “green” purchasing and sustainable product decisions.

Marketers may adopt a “green” brand image by adopting processes that involve inculcating ideas about sustainability in the minds of consumers through effective marketing messages (Koger and Scott, 2016). Al Iannuzzi (2016) says that new knowledge is a strong catalyst for making such changes. Particularly, he acknowledges that companies that can effectively inculcate a sustainable brand image in the minds of their consumers are likely to have the strongest impact in changing people’s behaviours (Al Iannuzzi, 2016). As such, it can be assumed that most consumers would choose products or services that have integrated sustainability in their operational processes. Effective branding and marketing are the best tools for communicating such a message because without them, it would be difficult for consumers to know about companies that have processes, which align with their core knowledge of sustainability. Therefore, marketers can simply communicate this characteristic of their operational processes to consumers who would then act on it by increasing their purchases of sustainable products or change their consumer behaviours to make better-informed future purchase decisions.

Companies that have not integrated sustainability in their operational plans need to do so to allow their marketing teams to demonstrate the same value to consumers. Therefore, highlighting the sustainable properties of operational processes may be equated to a differential attribute that companies could leverage in a competitive market. Some government and intergovernmental organisations have leveraged on this competency by branding their initiatives as sustainable or “green.” For example, a European food policy termed the “Green Deal” has been branded in this manner to decouple intensive resource use from consumption (Schally, 2020). Schally (2020) further suggests that this initiative could be useful in addressing climate change challenges and promoting the realisation of the UN SDGs. Sustainable production and consumption can also be enhanced using the same strategy to improve different facets of human development (Henriksen and Seabrooke, 2016; Evans, Welch and Swaffield, 2017; Walker, Pekmezovic and Walker, 2019). Overall, consumer attitudes and preferences about sustainability in the food industry, which have been highlighted in the present document, demonstrate the need for marketers to emphasise the use of sustainability, as a concept, in the production and distribution of food products (Schally, 2020). Governments, policy makers, activists and corporations alike should support this process.

Conclusion

From the onset of this study, it was established that SDGs are critical towards developing a sustainable future in terms of social and economic development. All UN member states ratified it in 2015 and expect them to be accomplished by 2030. There were 17 goals in general, but this paper focused on the 12^th, which is aimed at promoting responsible consumption and production. This goal is characterised by the need to adopt eco-friendly production practices and reduce the volume of waste produced from the same processes. This study highlighted the underlying attitudes of consumers towards the achievement of this goal. Although it was established that some of them still have trouble forfeiting their short-term gains for long-term advantages when making a decision whether to buy sustainable products, or not, they mostly have a positive attitude towards sustainability, which could help to support SDG 12.

Supporting this vision is an increasing consumer awareness about the existence of a link between their purchasing decisions, the environment and human wellbeing. In other words, the modern consumer is more concerned about the history and implications of their purchases on the environment, health and societal wellbeing. Furthermore, they are insisting on the use of sustainable and environmentally friendly procedures for achieving production and consumption goals. These attitudes influence purchasing behaviours by creating an environment where producers have to be accountable for the impact of their business practices on the environment and human life. The rising adoption of vegetarianism among some consumer segments has been given to demonstrate the power of consumers in influencing consumption patterns. However, of importance to this study is the heightened appreciation of the need for adopting sustainable production processes and applying the same principle in promoting positive purchasing behaviours. Based on this understanding, it is difficult to legislate aspects of sustainable development in consumer behaviour because it cannot be imposed on human action. Instead, it is necessary to educate the public about the need to consider this concept when making purchases, as it guarantees long-term wellness. Concisely, if consumers were made aware of the need to adopt environmentally friendly practices in their daily lives, they would be inclined to change their behaviours accordingly.

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