Consumer Attitudes & Preferences Toward Sustainability vs. Shopping Behaviors

Abstract

Because most of the land in our area is dedicated to agriculture, there is a lot of pressure on farmers to adopt better land management practices that minimize nutrient runoff that flows into the Red Cedar watershed. However, incorporating sustainable farming methods is easier said than done. Many farmers, including the owner of the farm we visited at the beginning of our research, believe that sustainability is important but challenging to implement due to the lack of support from consumers. On the flip side, there is also increasing pressure on consumers to help fix environmental issues by behaving more sustainably. Yet, as all consumers know, sometimes making sustainable purchases is not always easy or even an option.

This pattern of individualizing responsibility to one group or the other inspired me to focus my research on consumer attitudes toward sustainability and people’s shopping behaviors. My hope for this project is to encourage sustainable behaviors in both groups by giving farmers a better understanding of what consumers consider important when buying food so they can market their farming products and methods in a way that aligns with consumer preferences.

I started by looking at previous research on consumer behaviors and learning about factors that increase sustainability. With the help of Dr. Sarah Wood of the University of Wisconsin-Stout, I created a community survey with a series of questions dedicated to understanding: 1) people’s awareness about the environmental impact of consumer behaviors and farming practices, 2) people’s preferences and purchasing tendencies for sustainably and locally sourced foods, 3) people’s level of connection to their communities, local farmers, and the environment, and 4) people’s sense of responsibility to contribute to reducing water pollution and behave more sustainably. 1,500 surveys were evenly distributed to Dunn and Barron County. 146 of them were completed and returned, but after eliminating 14 that were only partially completed, I was left with a final sample size of 132.

I found that those with higher levels of awareness have stronger preferences toward sustainability and that those with higher levels of connection have a greater sense of responsibility. Most respondents agree that sustainability is important and that it is their responsibility to support local farmers. However, as consistent with previous research, there is a disconnect between consumers’ supposed preference toward sustainability and their shopping behaviors.

When asked to rank what matters most when buying food, respondents overwhelmingly ranked sustainability as least important. Furthermore, hardly anyone buys the majority of their food from local co-ops or directly from farmers regardless of the season. While it is unsurprising that most people buy most of their food from large-chain grocery stores, I was hoping that more people would report buying from local stores or farmers at least during the summer. This implies that consumers may not associate sustainable behaviors with buying food directly from farmers which could explain why farmers do not feel supported.

These findings are important to consider when encouraging both farmers and consumers to be more sustainable. Consumers clearly believe that sustainability is important and want to engage in more sustainable behaviors. The more consumers are aware, the more they prefer sustainability, and the more they feel connected, the more they feel responsible to be sustainable. I suggest that farmers invite community members to visit their farms to increase consumer awareness and connection. By doing so, it would provide people a chance to act on their preference to be more sustainable and increase support for local farmers. I also suggest that connecting factors that consumers consider important when buying food to sustainable farming practices would also be a good strategy to increase support. For example, farmers could explain that quality (ranked as most important to consumers) is not only the aesthetics of food but also includes things like soil health, environmental protection, and improving water quality. I hope that understanding consumer preferences toward sustainability can help farmers receive more support.

This research program has been full of amazing new experiences and learning opportunities that have deepened my understanding and appreciation for the environment and the importance of community. The main thing I learned is that we are all contributing to water pollution, but more importantly, we also all have a part to play in creating a solution. Individual actions are not enough to improve water quality, but the collective effort of our community if farmers and consumers worked together can result in meaningful and lasting change.