From traffic light nutrition labelling to pricing per 100g, litre, kilo – an everyday 2022 UK grocery shop requires consumers to wade through a maze of information at shelf to find the products that work for them. Manufacturers and brand managers are constantly battling, pushing through the noise to ensure their product is seen and, more importantly, added to basket.
So, with food eco-labelling soon to join the information fray, what impact will adding even more information, and especially information as topical as environmental impact, have on consumer choices?
Being ‘eco-friendly’ has become an increasingly mainstream concern and has driven major changes in consumer behaviour, through government intervention and public rhetoric. Think about the way we now dispose of waste – recycling, not dumping, use reusable shopping bags rather than single-use plastic, buy refill pouches rather than new plastic bottles.
Eco-labelling organisations across the UK & EU (Eco-Score – France, Foundation Earth – UK & EU), have been striving to give consumers greater transparency of the ecological impact of the food we eat including factors such as; growing methods, how ingredients are processed, transport methods, land use, water use, impact on climate change etc. In the UK, the IGD (the Institute of Grocery Distribution) is leading the way to develop a consistent UK method of front-of-pack eco-labelling. With the Co-op, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s and Tesco piloting the new label this summer (2022), eco-labels could very soon be a new problem for manufacturers.
What eco-score would your products receive? Will you see a swing in the products that consumers choose within your portfolio? Will consumers even notice the new eco-labelling, understand it and make changes based on the new labelling, even in the current economic climate?
Launchpad can help you find answers to these and any other questions you have about consumer behaviour. Harness eye tracking instore or design a virtual reality scenario to see how shoppers interact in-situ with eco-labelled products – don’t forget to delve into the cross-channel experience and observe shifts in online behaviour with our powerful UX tools!
Get in touch today to learn how our extensive consumer research experience and digital expertise can help inform your future strategy.
