Nearly half of Brits unwilling to pay more for sustainable packaging, new survey reveals

Packaging Solutions Green Solutions

A new survey, commissioned by leading food packaging specialist iKrafts, revealed that food quality and value dominate consumer priorities when purchasing food products, leaving over 80% of Brits unwilling to pay more than 5% extra for sustainable packaging. 

The main findings are as follows:

• 47.51% of respondents won’t pay anything extra for sustainable packaging.

• 80.45% of respondents won’t pay more than 5% extra for sustainable packaging.

• Only 6.04% respondents would pay 10%+ extra for sustainable packaging.

• 44.36% of respondents rank food quality as the top priority when purchasing food.

• 37.93% of respondents rank Price/Value as the top priority when purchasing food.

• Only 8.53% rank packaging sustainability as top priority when purchasing food.

The findings paint a challenging picture for businesses banking on consumer willingness to subsidise sustainability. A combined 80.45% of respondents said they would pay no more than 5% extra for sustainable packaging, while only 8.54% ranked it as their top priority when purchasing food. 

‘These outcomes send a clear message to the food industry surrounding consumer behaviour. It is clear that customers care about sustainable packaging in principle, but they are not willing to pay more for it and other factors will always come first when purchasing food.

‘For food producers and restaurants, this means the responsibility for funding the shift to eco friendly materials sits firmly with the brands themselves. This might entail absorbing costs, renegotiating supply chains, or investing in more affordable sustainable materials. But waiting for consumers to lead the charge is not a viable strategy if you want to improve the eco friendliness of your products, said Joe Sizeland, managing director at iKrafts

The research highlights a persistent gap between consumer values and purchasing behaviour, which unfortunately is an issue the food and hospitality sectors have been dealing with for years. 

As regulatory pressure on single use plastics and packaging waste continues to mount across the UK, there is a growing urgency for brands to act. Sustainable packaging should not be viewed as a cost to be passed on, but as a long term investment in brand resilience and environmental responsibility.