The Hartman Group, a consumer market research and business strategy services firm, has released its 2015 Transparency Report, available here. The report provides an in-depth understanding of transparency from the consumer’s perspective and as it relates to consumer trust in terms of how consumers evaluate what they hear from companies and what they want to know about products and companies’ business practices.
“While the worlds of business, activism, and academia use the concept of sustainability to incorporate economic, social, and environmental issues into one neat and tidy concept, most consumer understand the underlying values of the concept to be better expressed in terms of “transparency” and “responsibility,” according to Laurie Demeritt, CEO of The Hartman Group.
The Hartman Group report finds that awareness of, and familiarity with, sustainability continues to grow, reaching an all-time high of 79 percent in 2015 (up from 74 percent in 2013, when the last Hartman transparency report was published). This year’s report provides clear evidence that sustainability is becoming more prevalent in consumers’ attitudes and actions:
- An increasing percentage of consumers define sustainability in terms of natural resource conservation, land stewardship and responsible farming methods
- More consumers claim that their purchasing decisions are influenced by environmental and social well-being
- Almost a fifth claim to be buying sustainable products more frequently
However, according to the report, consumers continue to struggle to identify sustainable products and companies, hindering them in their desire to “support sustainable initiatives and contribute to the welfare of society and the environment.” Another area of growing concern is animal welfare. Consumers are seeking nformation consumers on how animals are raised – are they treated humanely and raised in as natural an environment as possible? Are they given hormones or antibiotics that may impact consumers’ health?
According to the report, consumers are increasingly drawing connections between their health and the conditions in which animals are raised and say they want to support companies that prioritize treatment of both workers and animals, even beyond low prices: almost half of consumers (47 percent) say they support companies that avoid inhumane treatment of animals (up 6 points from 2013). Distinctions like grass-fed, raised on pasture, no processed animal parts in feed, free-range, not fed corn, and humane conditions are now rising in importance. the report found.
“Looking ahead, as with large amorphous issues like GMO’s, public concern and focus on animal welfare will not be lessening in intensity. Retailers, restaurants, suppliers, and processors will need to better understand some fundamental notions about transparency and how it can improve dialogue with changing consumers in relation to animal welfare, ” Hartman CEO Demeritt said.
