- Gen Z more likely to say shopping sustainably is important to them, but older people much more likely to action their beliefs, according to new research from Savanta
- Savanta’s Q3 Grocery Eye Report suggests Boomers more likely to use reusable bags, buy loose goods, minimise waste and prioritise recyclable packaging
- Sustainability in retail is defined differently across generations, with older people more likely to associate with recycling – while younger people tend to link with human rights
- Consumers think that sustainability is as much the responsibility of retailers and brands as it is on themselves as individuals
- Sustainability is seen as a second-tier decision maker for consumers, behind price and quality – but still protected as a key factor
Generation Z (51%) are more likely to rank sustainability as important to them when shopping compared to Baby Boomers (39%), but younger people are significantly less likely to action their beliefs.
New research from market research consultancy Savanta suggests that younger people – born between 1995 and 2010 – “talk a good game” when it comes to sustainability, but older generations in their 50’s and 60’s are much more likely to take action across almost every category tested, including:
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- Using reusable bags (Gen Z: 39%, Boomers: 75%)
- Buy loose goods (Gen Z: 24%, Boomers: 44%)
- Buy produce in season (Gen Z: 25%, Boomers: 52%)
- Buy ‘wonky’ produce (Gen Z: 28%, Boomers: 55%)
- Minimising waste through meal plans / freezing (Gen Z: 29%, Boomer: 58%)
- Only buy products with recyclable packaging (Gen Z: 24%, Boomer: 40%)
Savanta‘s Q3 2024 Grocery Eye Report, which tracks consumer behaviour every quarter, also shows that consumers increasingly think that taking action on sustainability is as much the responsibility of retailers (42%) and brands (41%) as it is on themselves as individuals (36%). Gen Z are more likely than other generations to see it as the role of retailers (48%) and brands (58%) to educate them on sustainability.
Sustainability in retail is defined differently across generations, with older people more likely to associate with plastic & recycling (67%) and food waste (73%) – while younger people tend to link sustainability with human rights (66%).
The most important factors for consumer decision making are price (73%) and quality (70%). Sustainability (41%) is a second-tier decision maker for customers, although it is ahead of production processes (39%), ethical brand (39%), locally sourced (37%), packaging (37%), being Fairtrade (35%), a product you can’t get at other retailers (35%) and being organic (30%).
Julie Vigne, Senior Director at Savanta says:
“Generation Z talk a good game about sustainable shopping, but our research suggests that in reality it is older people who are doing the heavy lifting. Across a whole range of behaviours, from recycling to not using plastic, it’s Baby Boomers who are more likely to be taking action, not younger people.”
“There are good reasons for this; aside from anything else, older consumers have more disposable income than younger generations. Baby Boomers can afford to be discerning, whereas Gen Z simply might not have the cash for often more expensive and sustainable alternatives. Younger people are more likely to need to see the personal benefit of sustainable behaviours, such as cost saving, for this reason.”
