Health vs sustainability: Where does responsibility lie?

Health and sustainability are important factors shaping shoppers’ purchasing decisions. Ideally, people want products that are good for both their bodies and the environment. But with so much noise, misleading claims, and constantly changing advice, it can be difficult to know which products are genuinely healthy or sustainable, and which choices we should be making. This begs an important question: where does the responsibility lie for making ‘good’ choices?

Where does the responsibility lie?

Is it with shoppers to stay informed and make ethical, healthy decisions themselves? Or is it with retailers and suppliers to provide clear information and make decisions on shoppers’ behalf? In this way, attitudes towards health and sustainability differ. With ShopperVista, we uncover shoppers’ real attitudes across health and sustainability to help you ensure your messaging and strategies resonate and influence shopper behaviour.

Each month, our Shopper Confidence Index tracks shoppers’ trust in the industry and their attitudes towards the financial outlook. Overall, shoppers have greater trust in retailers and manufacturers to provide healthy products (74%) than they do in their ability to reduce environmental impact (55%). Shoppers are seemingly satisfied with the healthy options available to them, feeling confident in their ability to make healthy choices in their shopping.

Health: shoppers want clear information, not intervention

In our monthly survey, we also track the ranking of choice influencers. The clarity of nutritional information matters to shoppers, indicating that they want health benefits to be communicated clearly. This was considered more important than adding or removing ingredients to make a product healthier. While health is important to shoppers, they prefer to see clear nutritional information, including calories, macros and artificial additives, and decide on the product themselves, rather than having retailers make health decisions for them by simply altering a product’s composition. Health is also deeply personal; shoppers do not unanimously agree on what constitutes a healthy product. Shoppers set their own targets and track health metrics accordingly, whether that’s through calories, protein, or artificial additives.

Although retailers have a responsibility to provide healthy options and make nutritional content easy to understand, shoppers see themselves as responsible for making the final purchasing decision. Retailers and brands can better meet shoppers’ needs by clearly communicating nutritional benefits on packaging and signage, and through activations that support health‑focused missions. Crucially, they should ensure healthier options are consistently available and promoted, including in areas with limited access to fresh, nutritious food.

Sustainability: rising expectations

By contrast, sustainability has slipped down shoppers’ list of priorities, not because they no longer care, but because cost‑of‑living pressures have forced them to prioritise other factors in their spending. ShopperVista data shows that, currently, less than half of shoppers say the environmental impact of a product is important when making purchase decisions.

In our Sustainable Shoppers report, we identified several key barriers preventing shoppers from acting sustainably, including their limited understanding of environmental issues. We also found that shoppers increasingly believe food and drink manufacturers have a responsibility to limit their environmental impact, signalling that shoppers want the industry to make sustainable choices on their behalf.

It is therefore important that retailers and brands meet their sustainability targets and champion sustainable practices. Keeping sustainability at the heart of their operations: by clearly communicating progress, signposting sustainable options, and encouraging easy and affordable swaps.

Aligning industry action with shopper expectations

Ultimately, shoppers expect clear messaging and guidance when considering health and sustainability in their grocery shopping. However, sustainability is increasingly seen as the industry’s responsibility, with brands and retailers expected to take the lead whilst health remains a personal matter. Understanding where shoppers believe responsibility lies is essential for designing products, packaging and activations that meet their needs.

Looking for more insight?

ShopperVista subscribers can unlock deeper insights into shoppers’ mindsets and tap into health trends and trusted habits with our Health: Segmenting Shopper Attitudes report. If you have any questions or would like to explore how we can tailor our research to your business needs, please reach out to [email protected].