Americans still desire sustainability despite COVID-19 concerns.
Bio-Engineering research firm, Genomatica, was the source of this research survey.
Bio-Engineering firm, Genomatica, just released a new survey with results that have surprised many within the manufacturing and cleaning industries. The San Diego based firm found that 85% of respondents were still “they’ve been thinking about sustainability the same amount or more during the COVID-19 pandemic, with those thinking about it more noticing less traffic (45%), cleaner air (42%) and more plastic waste (40%).” Most importantly, Genomatica note that 56% of Americans “want both the government and brands to prioritize sustainability even while facing other issues.”
What does this mean for decision makers, and how can companies respond? These are the questions we should be asking ourselves, but before we come to any conclusions, lets look at the rest of the numbers.
Critically, Americans have found that working remotely has enabled a ‘more sustainable’ lifestyle;
Six in 10 Americans (59%) say working from home is more sustainable than working in an office, with just 13% disagreeing.
The top reasons? No need to commute (85%), followed by using less energy to heat and cool large workplaces (64%).
Americans who have been more sustainable lately cite driving less as the number one reason (68%), followed by buying less stuff (54%), throwing fewer things away (42%), not commuting (41%) and flying less (37%).
An interesting counter-point shows that sustainable products, despite being desired, are largely not the reason for American’s shift to sustainability. That being said, natural cleaning products appear to have a rising stock in the cleaning product marketplace as people look for home cleaning solutions to prevent viral spread.
Of Americans who have been more sustainable lately, 1 in 3 (32%) say it’s because they’re buying more sustainable products.
Four in five (82%) Americans trust natural-based cleaners to protect against COVID-19.
Half of Americans are comfortable using natural cleaning products today (50%) and even more (60%) will be comfortable using reusable bags at the store as soon as they’re allowed to.
One might venture to guess that consumers are becoming more willing to bring sustainable practices home, as one’s home, office space, and public health all begin to interact more in our daily lives.
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