According to the 2014 “Conscious Consumer” study from Gibbs-rbb Strategic Communications, Americans are willing to spend 31 percent more per week on groceries if those products are made in ways that align with their social and environmental values. Specifically, shoppers are willing to spend more on brands that can prove to them that they advance the well-being of the planet and humans, as well as provide finished products at retail that come from safe food sources.
Increasingly, sustainability isn’t an option for most manufacturers. If they want to compete, they must pursue “green” operations, practices and ingredients—and address potentially volatile labor practices.