What Stirs Consumers to Purchase Carbon-Friendly Food? Investigating the Motivational and Emotional Aspects in Three Studies

Elfriede Penz,Eva Hofmann

doi:10.3390/su13158377

Elfriede Penz, Eva Hofmann

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/su13158377

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Abstract

As part of diminishing climate change, food consumption needs to be addressed to reduce greenhouse gases. In order to change food consumption habits to carbon-friendly eating patterns, consumers may be targeted by information campaigns and legal regulation. The current paper studies consumers’ diets and food purchase behavior. In particular, it aims to understand consumers’ motivational and emotional aspects that influence their behavior. Study 1, an interview study, aims to understand the development of and motivations for climate-friendly nutrition. Identifying eco-friendly motives also revealed that emotions seem to play an important role in nutrition and the purchase of climate-friendly products. Study 2 aims at identifying consumers’ positive and negative emotions when it comes to consuming carbon-friendly food. Again, qualitative interviews revealed a variety of positive and negative emotions. Study 3 quantitatively tested the theory of planned behavior, including positive and negative emotions and predicted carbon-friendly food purchases. The results show that attitudes, perceived behavioral control and positive emotions predict carbon-friendly food purchases. Derived from these findings, recommendations for information campaigns and legislation to foster carbon-friendly food purchases are presented.

Highlights

Climate change has been a pressing problem of humanity, becoming increasingly challenging and central from year to year
The results regarding the relationship between emotions and carbon-friendly food behavior extend earlier research [27], which focused only on the emotions of guilt and pride in the context of sustainability
Including negative and positive emotions [7] can explain the purchase of carbon-friendly food, we find that the theory of planned behavior (TPB) including negative and positive emotions is an adequate theoretical vehicle to predict carbon-friendly food purchases

Summary

Introduction

Climate change has been a pressing problem of humanity, becoming increasingly challenging and central from year to year. Regulators, and consumers, are asking how greenhouse gas emissions (especially carbon dioxide (CO2 )) from food consumption can be reduced so that climate change can decelerate. The current research aims to build on established theories to understand antecedents and drivers of consumer behavior regarding carbon-friendly food, to make sure that powerful campaigns and legal regulation can be designed to meet the end of increasing carbon-friendly food consumption. Such campaigns and legal regulations are important as consumers are often unaware of which behaviors can be classified as carbon-friendly [2,3].

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