More than half of EU consumers shop with environment in mind
The results are in from the European Commission’s 2019 Consumer Conditions Scoreboard, revealing that consumers are becoming increasingly aware about their environmental footprint, the overall gap in consumer conditions is narrowing between the different regions of the EU, and that ‘consumer rules’ enable trust in the marketplace.
More specifically, the survey revealed that an increasing proportion of EU consumers consider the environmental impact of their purchases. Consumers in southern EU countries are deemed the most environmentally conscious (59%), as are those in eastern European countries (57%).
“A clear majority of retailers (71%) think that environmental claims made for products or services in their sector are reliable,” noted the report.
The Commission also found that consumer conditions are declining in western Europe, while improving across other regions in the bloc. As a result, southern and eastern EU countries are ‘narrowing the gap’ with the EU average.
However, a significant gap remains between the highest scoring country and the lowest – noted as Sweden (71%) and Croatia (53%).
Ecommerce was also a focus of the report, with an increasing number of consumers buying online. Across the EU, figures reached 60% in 2018. This reached as high as 84% in Denmark, yet at just 20% in Romania and Bulgaria.
Speaking of the findings, EU commissioner for justice, consumers and gender equality Věra Jourová said: “I am glad to see that consumers are increasingly aware of their environmental footprint when shopping. As the Christmas season approaches, I encourage all consumers to engage with trustworthy traders, know their rights, and indeed buy responsibly.”
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