Sustainability v the cost of living – is it one or the other?
Does making greener food choices always come with a cost?
More specifically, is the cost of living crisis forcing consumers to act less sustainably?
There is tons of research out there on how cost effective going green can be, some people say it is cheaper, while others claim it is simply too expensive.
And it can be hard to get to the facts, especially when products labelled as eco-friendly often seem to be at a premium.
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The Independent newspaper even claims 6/10 shoppers say they have had to make less sustainable choices during the crisis due to costs.
So what is the truth in all of this and how do we all, consumers and producers alike, arrive at a more sustainable future?
Kate Mesher, Research Executive, Ipsos UK
Kate Mesher is a Research Executive in the Energy & Environment Public Affairs team at Ipsos UK, one of the UK’s leading research organisations.
She focuses on research relating to climate change, net zero, and climate adaptation. She has worked on projects for a range of clients across government departments, government agencies, research councils and universities, including the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Department for Business, Energy, and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
Most recently, she has worked on research on public acceptance of net zero policies in the context of the rising cost of living, and has conducted qualitative research to understand in-depth views on climate adaptation and future net zero scenarios.
Jonathan Hall, Managing Partner, Kantar’s Sustainable Transformation Practice
Jonathan is responsible for leading the team, solution development, thought leadership and business management for all of Kantar’s client work in the social and environmental space across the world.
The core expertise of the Practice is in understanding the relevance of sustainability issues by sector, developing and helping activate meaningful and authentic purpose, devising innovation solutions, unlocking behaviour change, and structuring impactful measurement programmes.
Jonathan has over 25 years’ experience of creating breakthrough brand, innovation and consumer strategies, and has led businesses in the UK, France and East & West-Coast US: in the fields of innovation, design, communications, brand development and consumer insight.
Aoife Allen, Director, Hubbub
Aoife spent her early career in government and NGOs focussed broadly on human rights before retraining as a chef.
Before joining Hubbub, she was a chef and cooking tutor at Dublin’s fabulous Fumbally Café, ran cooking classes with young people experiencing homelessness and addiction, and helped set up some small food businesses in Dublin.
Hubbub believes that that insight-led, experimental design should be at the heart of solving some of the most pressing environmental challenges facing society. Design has always been at the heart of everything that Hubbub creates.
