The impact of eco labels on perceived sustainability : A study on coffee consumers in Finland and the Netherlands

Businesses today are held accountable for their sustainability efforts and commitments. Sustainability has become a key component of businesses strategies both nationally and globally, due to consumers’ increased concerns towards our planet and climate. Business-es in the food industry are largely relying on people and the environment, as the key components of growing and producing the products sold to consumers. Eco labels, their characteristics and implications on consumer buyer behaviour and sus-tainable coffee has been studied at large, with various limitations and findings. With both, the... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Rask, Katrin Mia Karoliina
Dokumenttyp: fi=Pro gradu -tutkielma|en=Master's thesis|sv=Pro gradu -avhandling|
Erscheinungsdatum: 2022
Schlagwörter: coffee / ympäristömerkit / sustainable development / consumer behaviour / Master's Degree Programme in International Business / fi=Kansainvälinen liiketoiminta|en=International Business|
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26837164
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://osuva.uwasa.fi/handle/10024/14868

Businesses today are held accountable for their sustainability efforts and commitments. Sustainability has become a key component of businesses strategies both nationally and globally, due to consumers’ increased concerns towards our planet and climate. Business-es in the food industry are largely relying on people and the environment, as the key components of growing and producing the products sold to consumers. Eco labels, their characteristics and implications on consumer buyer behaviour and sus-tainable coffee has been studied at large, with various limitations and findings. With both, the increased concerns for sustainability, and increased green marketing communication, eco labels still stand an integral part to communicate products’ sustainable attribute to consumers. Therefore, impact of eco labels on coffee products is chosen as the topic of the research. This master’s thesis research was conducted as qualitative research through semi-structured interviews, with the aim of studying the impact of eco labels on Finnish and Dutch consumers’ perception of coffee products’ sustainability. The sample consisted of nine interviewees, of which four were Dutch and five were Finnish. A research model was developed based on prior research, identifying three contributing factors impacting the perception of sustainability created by eco labels. The perception process identified through theoretical review was included into the research model. The findings indicate that eco labels have a positive impact on the perceived sustainability of coffee. Consumer knowledge is seen as most impactful factor, affecting also on consum-er trust and credibility of sustainability quality of the eco labels. However, the level of knowledge on sustainability and eco labels is found to be of diverse levels, thus impacting the importance of displaying eco labels on product packaging. ; Nykypäivänä, yrityksiä pidetään vastuussa heidän kestävän kehityksen sitoumuksistaan ja saavutuksistaan. Kestävästä kehityksestä on tullut keskeinen osa ...