What brands need to do now
Three actions that can redefine your brand
Recognise that, despite the political headwinds, a major proportion of consumers still see action on climate breakdown – and to a lesser extent plastic waste – as critical to our collective wellbeing. Acting on sustainability is no longer optional – it gives brands their license to operate. Remember that the Eco-Active audience is sizable and, despite the pressure from those who would like to call a halt to change, their numbers have stayed constant this year. The commitment of people who have adopted green habits remains resilient, and they are a buyer group that should not be ignored.
Brands that attract Eco-Actives can grow penetration and provide inspiration for how to use sustainable habits as a building block for brand credibility. A holistic story bringing in packaging, ingredients and your workers is needed to consistently attract this group.
Mass manufacturers such as PepsiCo (through Natuchips) and Natura show that change isn’t just for challenger brands. To win in this space, you need to be bold and wear your actions loudly in your marketing, don’t hide them in the small print.
We’ve been running this study since 2019, talking to consumers around the world about what they say they care about and comparing that to their real-world purchase behaviours, using data from Worldpanel by Numerator and Europanel.
The 2025 study covers 30 countries and 96,000 respondents to measure the value action gap between what people say they care about.
The ambition is to assess the size of the opportunity for brands and the approaches that are most likely to change behaviour.
