The impact of sustainable packaging on consumers' choices: an empirical analysis in the food industry.

Abstract

Keeping up with the constant social changes, new trends and innovations is an ongoing challenge for all kinds of organizations. In recent years, in particular, one trend on which global attention has been focusing is sustainable development. Therefore, a progressive increase of interest is taking place both in the supply of products marked by a wide range of green features, and in more responsible and conscious consumption choices with respect to these products. In this context, packaging appears to be one of the main elements on which companies focus to support sustainability, since, on the one hand, the initial idea of packaging was linked to end-of-life circle after its use, and, on the other hand, its capacity of drawing the attention of consumers being different thanks to its design elements, such as image, shape and material. These considerations represent the starting point of the paper: from an initial explanation of the main consumer behaviour theories and a description of sustainable development, the work focuses on environmental-friendly packaging in the food industry. In particular, its importance as one of the most significant marketing tool for communicating the sustainable values of products and its impact on consumers’ purchase choices are analysed. Finally, in order to give a practical focus to the above and identify the factors that most influence consumers' decisions to purchase foods in eco-friendly packaging, the results of an exploratory survey conducted through the administration of a questionnaire are presented.