Eco-friendliness last on shoppers' minds: survey

Business Times 26 Mar 08;

GROCERY buyers are more turned on by value for money than environmental friendliness when it comes to deciding where to shop, a survey conducted by marketing information firm The Nielson Company has found.

A worldwide survey that included Singapore found shoppers rate environmental friendliness the least important factor - below price, product quality, convenience and location - when deciding where to spend their grocery dollars.

'Good value for money' was rated the No 1 consideration.

Conducted in mid-2007, the Internet study quizzed 26,486 people in 47 markets across Europe, the Asia-Pacific, the Americas and the Middle East.

The ranking of factors in terms of importance was largely the same across the region - though Singaporeans do not seem particularly worried about whether a store uses recyclable bags and packaging.

On a scale of one to five, with five denoting high importance, only 17 per cent of respondents here registered a four or five for recyclable bags and packaging, while an average of 33 per cent of consumers in the Asia-Pacific region did so.

Conversely, 92 per cent of Singaporean respondents gave value for money the thumbs up - above the regional average of 83 per cent.

'Despite growing consumer demand for shops to be environmentally friendly in conducting their business, consumers don't necessarily make this a priority when choosing where to shop - good value for money and convenience comes out tops instead,' said Nielson Company director Soumya Saklani.