Consumers' literacy and preferences for sustainability labels: an exploratory analysis on Italian young adults. (2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Vecchio, Riccardo; Annunziata, Azzurra; Krystallis, Athanasios; Pomarici, Eugenio
• Is Part Of: International journal of globalisation and small business. Volume 7:Number 3/4(2015)
• Page Start: 221
• Page End: 233
• Publication Date: 2015
• Subjects: sustainability labels -- multivariate probit -- Italy -- consumer literacy -- consumer preferences -- young adults -- consumer knowledge -- socio-demographics -- food habits; Small business -- Periodicals; Globalization -- Periodicals; 338.642
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1479-3059

Abstract

Activists and policy makers strongly encourage consumers to act as responsible citizens when purchasing everyday products. Accordingly, retailers and brands are competing on the market introducing a plethora of sustainability labels that should address increasing customer demand. Nevertheless, the usefulness of these labelling schemes in aiding consumers to make informed purchase decisions is still heavily debated. Results of a survey on Italian young consumers (N = 500) reveal low levels of individuals' familiarity with sustainability labels and highlight that several socio-demographic characteristics and food habits have a significant impact on consumers' knowledge of these labels.