Are consumers aware of products’ environmental impacts? Different results between life cycle assessment data and consumers’ opinions: the case study of organic Parmigiano Reggiano and its packaging

Abstract

Abstract Companies are paying attention to the reduction of their products’ environmental impact and consumer’s opinion is fundamental to understand which are the market strategies to be undertaken. Consumers are interested in environmental issue, but do they buy products taking scientific data into account? For example, according to literature, consumers believe that the abolition of plastic packaging is the solution to marine litter caused by plastic waste, but researchers and scientists do not agree. In collaboration with an Italian dairy factory, this study carried out a survey to understand what is the eco-friendliest packaging materials according to consumers, taking as a reference the Parmigiano Reggiano. Their opinions were then compared to the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) results obtained considering the whole cheese life cycle and its packaging. The analysis highlights a big gap between consumers’ thoughts and scientific data and suggests solutions to make citizens aware of real environmental impacts.