What's holding APAC consumers back from being sustainable?

Most consumers these days want to live a sustainable life but the rising cost of living is preventing 67% of them from acting on their good intentions. Consumers in Thailand (76%) feel the most impact on their sustainable behaviour because of the cost of living. Those in Malaysia (72%) and the Philippines (74%) also shared similar sentiments, Kantar's latest Sustainability Sector Index 2022 in APAC found. At the same time, while APAC consumers want to be more mindful of the environment, 63% also said their day-to-day priorities get in the way.

Meanwhile, 29% of APAC consumers are among the most active when it comes to sustainability. Nearly eight in 10 of APAC's "actives", meaning those prepared to spend more time and effort to reduce their impact on the planet, are feeling the rising cost of living on maintaining their sustainable lifestyles (77%).

The proportion of Southeast Asia’s “actives” is highest in Indonesia (40%) followed by Singapore (35%) and on average in Malaysia (29%).

Amidst the rising cost of living, APAC shoppers want more affordable price points to change sustainable intention into action. Two-thirds (66%) of APAC shoppers say products that are "better for the environment and society" are more expensive, with just two in five of those who are "struggling" with their household budgets now actively seeking brands that offer ways to offset their impact on the environment. This is compared to 65% who are financially comfortable, Kantar found. Although sustainability is still an important issue to APAC shoppers, 55% of them are also more concerned about saving money instead of saving the planet.

Aside from price, not having knowledge about sustainable alternatives poses the second major barrier for APAC shoppers. When making purchasing decisions, 89% of APAC shoppers are also now taking careful note of or sometimes considering the causes that their chosen brands support. In fact, 68% said that clear certification explaining the ethical benefits would influence their purchase.

Kantar's APAC head of sustainability, Trezelene Chan, explained that APAC's unique make-up of diverse economies mean affordable price points are an imperative to ensure shoppers convert their intentions into action when it comes to sustainability, especially as most of them want to do good.

"While there will always be a premium segment, brands must start mainstreaming and collaborating across the entire value-chain to drive economies of scale. By offering a sustainable product with a price point that more people can afford will drive mass market adoption and help brands grow their value now and in the future," she said.

Managing sceptical consumers

Brands also need to manage sceptical consumers and greenwashing, with 84% of APAC respondents saying they have seen misleading information about sustainable actions taken by companies and 59% worrying the brands involved in ESG are doing so for commercial reasons.

A high number of respondents in Southeast Asia have also seen misleading information about companies' sustainable actions - Singapore (81%), Malaysia (85%), and Indonesia (81%). Compared to the APAC average, those in Southeast Asia are more likely to worry about brands championing ESG for commercial reasons. In fact, Malaysians (68%) are slightly more concerned compared to Singaporeans (63%) and Indonesians (65%).

Although APAC consumers are more likely to keep abreast of a company's sustainability efforts and either support or stop using brands based on their environmental impact, 58% of shoppers in the region find it hard to tell which products and services are good or bad ethically for the environment. Nearly half do not know where to find sustainable or ethical products (46%) and one-third are concerned that sustainable products work less well, or they are lower quality (32%).

Southeast Asian consumers also struggle to tell which products and services are good or bad ethically for the environment. In fact, 48% of Singaporeans do not know where to find sustainable or ethical products and 36% are concerned that sustainable products work less well, or they are lower quality.

Similarly, 46% of Malaysians and 40% of Indonesians are clueless as to where they can find sustainable or ethical products. However, compared to their Singaporean counterparts, only 29% of Malaysians and 28% of Indonesians are concerned about the quality of sustainable products.

(Read also: Coca-Cola's COP27 greenwashing backlash: Can brands win over sceptics?)

Meet Asia’s top PR and communication leaders in-person. PR Asia sets the stage for the future of purpose-driven contemporary PR. Join us on 9 November as we gather Asia’s top PR and communication practitioners in-person in Malaysia. Deep dive into the next necessary steps for PR as we head towards 2023. Only at #PRAsia.

Brands need to take leadership

Brands have consistently been called upon by consumers to take the lead when it comes to sustainability issues. In fact, 32% of APAC shoppers said it is up to businesses to behave sustainably as well as governments and NGOs (31%). As long as businesses walk the talk, 56% of consumers in the region are prepared to invest their money to support companies that do good. The same number also actively seek out brands that offer ways to offset their impact on the environment.

Consumers are also not afraid to cut ties with brands that produce products which impact the environment, with 54% of them doing so. Separately, the top three issues that consumers in APAC want companies to tackle are air pollution, hazardous waste disposal, and water pollution. Consumers want companies in 22 of 38 indicated sectors to tackle overpackaging, non-recyclable packaging and landfill, overconsumption, and waste.

Kantar’s Sustainability Sector Index 2022 is based on interviews with 33,000 consumers in 32 countries in Americas (6,007), APAC (11,020), Europe (16,017) in June 2022. APAC covered Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Meet Asia’s top PR and communication leaders in-person. PR Asia sets the stage for the future of purpose-driven contemporary PR. Join us on 9 November as we gather Asia’s top PR and communication practitioners in-person in Malaysia. Deep dive into the next necessary steps for PR as we head towards 2023. Only at #PRAsia.

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