IGD research reveals a big appetite from consumers to be healthier and more sustainable in their food choices and consumers are looking for support to make positive changes.
As a nation and a planet, we face significant public health and environmental challenges. There is increasing focus on the role of the food we produce, consume and waste, and there is now overwhelming evidence that current diets are impacting the planet. Without change, food security is at risk for future generations.
The challenge is that food systems are incredibly complex spanning production, land use, transport and food waste to name a few. Substantial scientific evidence links healthy diets and environmental sustainability and changing what we eat, and drink can make a big difference to the health of the population and the planet.
There needs to be a significant shift in how the food system operates and delivers; it is complex and emotive. The real opportunity comes from changing diets, if we empower and enable consumers, they will create the necessary demand to help drive the change required.
Our research, Appetite for Change, seeks to understand consumers’ attitudes to healthy and sustainable diets. And our aim is to inspire the food and drink industry to promote positive behaviour change, through evidence-based and consumer focused solutions.
Consumers are confused
We found that most people could articulate the principles of a healthy and sustainable diet, stating the need to increase fruit and vegetable consumption, reduce meat intake and foods that are high in fat, salt and sugar.
However, very few people follow a diet that meets the government’s national dietary guidelines, the Eatwell Guide, and you might expect most consumers to rate their diets negatively. When asked ‘how healthy and sustainable would you say your current everyday eating habits are?’ the self-reported average was 6.3/10, suggesting that many consumers view their diets positively and overestimate how healthy and sustainable they are.
Despite being able to describe a balanced diet, people find it hard to translate knowledge into action. Those who eat meat daily, feel they are achieving a ‘balanced diet’ and often see no need to change. Yet, online food diaries, completed as part of the research, showed that the proportions of food groups these people consume is not aligned with the government guidelines, with plates containing very little fruit and vegetables and large portions of meat.
There is significant appetite for change
After exploring consumers’ attitudes towards health and the environment we were able to identify different mindsets depending on consumers’ readiness for change. These mindsets were plotted on the transtheoretical model of behaviour change1 2 - a well evidenced model that maps change as a five-stage journey.
It’s very positive to see that 66% of consumers are already changing their diets or thinking about making changes to be healthier and more sustainable. This group also welcome help from industry and are looking for products and solutions.
There are also those who are resistant to change (13%), and those who haven’t thought about it yet (21%). To bring these people on the journey it’s important to help them understand what a balanced diet is and normalise healthier and sustainable choices to ensure they’re not experiencing a sense of loss in their diet. Tactics such as subconscious nudging via store or menu layouts can help people to make better choices without even noticing.
Health is the primary driver
We explored various elements of health and sustainability to determine the key drivers and barriers for making food and drink choices.
Health is by far the biggest motivator for change and is especially important among consumers aged 45-54 and those in higher socioeconomic groups (ABC1s). Personal and family health are significantly more important than environmental impact when making purchase decisions. The environment can provide a supporting reason and motivate change, especially for younger women aged 18-24 (22%) and those who eat more plant-based diets (28%).
Easy solutions are critical
Appetite for Change shows that consumers are open to a range of initiatives that make change easy, but there are significant demographic differences when testing interventions:
- Consumers aged 18-24 are far more open to considering interventions than older consumers
- Women are more open to considering interventions than men
- Lower socioeconomic groups (DE vs AB) are less open to considering interventions, reinforcing that cost perception is a barrier to change
- Those who don’t eat meat every day are more open to considering interventions than those who do, and found them personally relevant
- Consumers who are already making changes are much more receptive to all ideas of change
- Those who haven’t thought about making changes show the highest resistance
- Consideration for the small steps, e.g. blended meat products, demonstrate there is room to nudge this audience to evolve their diets
Translating behaviour change theory into practical solutions
The research identifies practical steps the food and grocery industry can take to encourage behaviour change for each of the different mindsets based around five core principles:
1. Ease: Consumers are more likely to take smaller steps towards bigger change, for example adopting ‘meat-free Mondays’
2. Signposting: Retailers need to use eye-catching signs to make the right choices easy and clearly highlight the benefits of healthy and sustainable products over any perceived negatives
3. Placement: Positioning healthy and sustainable products in prime positions in-store, for example plant-based options next to meat options, will encourage shoppers to browse and experiment
4. Product: Ensure healthy and sustainable options are appealing and inspiring, so that a plant-based meat alternative becomes an easy switch, offering convenience and familiarity
5. Influence: Consumers are looking for inspiring ideas, using recipe cards and online influencers will help motivate and inspire
Next steps
There are many actions that we can take to encourage positive behaviour change towards healthy and sustainable diets. The impact of solutions will vary depending on the mindset of consumers, so targeted and personalised interventions are likely to be more effective.
Following this research, we will be looking to test practical interventions in real-life settings.
We all have a role to play, but our impact will be much greater if we come together to drive the change required.
For the full research findings please visit IGD.com/healthysustainablediets
HANNAH PEARSE
Hannah.pearse@igd.com
To find out more about IGD and the services they provide to the retail industry, click here.
This article was originally published in The Retailer, our quarterly online magazine providing thought-leading insights from BRC experts and Associate Members.