Consumer Perceptions, Understanding and Use of Product Related Environmental Information

Book excerpt: Product-related environmental information is an important policy instrument for a shift towards more sustainable consumption patterns, and such information helps consumers choose environmentally improved products. While ecolabeling has had a particularly strong breakthrough in Nordic markets, a number of other communication modes, such as environmental product declarations and producers' self-declared claims have been applied in both the consumer and business-to-business markets. This report comprises a summary of recent research on how Nordic consumers perceive, understand, and use product-related environmental information. A comprehensive literature review supplemented with expert interviews forms the foundation for this work. The report highlights well-researched areas and proposes areas where deeper knowledge and understanding is required. The research was conducted cooperatively between the International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics (IIIEE) at Lund University in Sweden; the National Consumer Research Centre in Finland; and Environice in Iceland with the purpose to obtain and present a comprehensive picture of the situation in the Nordic countries.