How green are Italians?
Recent research conducted by Altroconsumo shows that 71%of Italians are ready to make more environmentally conscious consumer choices and adopt eco-responsible behaviors. Italian consumers show an average propensity for sustainability: good behaviors are related to food, the purchase of products and services and separate waste collection, while mobility attitudes show below average results.
Thus, there are some limitations in adopting fully sustainable behaviors, and one of the first obstacles is price. Environmentally friendly products often result in higher costs related to the quality of raw materials or the use of innovative technologies. For most of the areas examined, cost is perceived as the main obstacle and is mentioned by about 40 % of respondents. However, as also shown in a previous Altroconsumo survey, nearly 1 in 2 Italians are willing to pay more for products that really have a lower environmental impact.
A survey by Adiconsum in the same period attests that that 43% of consumers make their choices that are based on environmental impact, and 48%, on the contrary, decide because by price, while being aware of the effects of their choices.
On the other hand, the value of durability seems to allow the price barrier to be overcome: 47% of consumers is willing to pay more to buy a product that can have a longer life cycle.
To ensure that consumers choose the value of sustainability and agree to pay a higher price, maximum transparency and reliability on information on both the product and the manufacturer is required. It is essential that consumers receive general information that helps them become aware of the sustainability impact of their consumption choices and be able to distinguish truly green products and services from those that are not.
Communication must assume first and foremost an educational function, and companies, for their part, will have to prepare information tools with which to communicate the sustainability of their products and their activities: “labeling,” “certification,” “attestation,” and “branding” will enable consumers to make increasingly conscious and responsible purchasing choices.
