Young people have a connection to the people, places and practices that raise their food according to Cargill’s research in the US, China, Mexico and France. Twice as many young respondents in the US reported knowing a livestock or seafood farmer compared to those over 55. More than 50% of Gen Y participants changed their eating habits for sustainability reasons in the past year versus 19% of older US respondents. Over 80% of survey respondents said the way an animal is raised is important, and almost half of them were willing to pay more as a result.
Source: bizjournals.com
Lightbulb Moment: It is interesting that while research shows that consumers would rather have self-checkout in a grocery store to avoid human interaction, they will change their eating behaviors in response to sustainability issues. What I would love to see done in a study is a mapping of these boundaries.