20 May 2019

Sustainable consumption: when will zero waste be achieved?

 

26% of French people put the environment at the top of their list of concerns in 2018. It is a record figure in forty years in the CREDOC Way of life survey.

In this context, the French are increasingly adopting sustainable and responsible consumption practices.

As demonstrated in:
– the development of second-hand purchases and collaborative practices
– the increase in the consumption of products from organic farming or labelled as sustainable, such as bulk food products.

According to the CREDOC data, 47% of French people have bought a food product in bulk in the last 6 months.

More specifically, a NIELSEN study, published in April 2019, indicates that 37% of respondents purchased bulk products beyond fresh fruits and vegetables in 2018.

The most commonly purchased products in bulk are oilseeds (nuts, almonds, hazelnuts,…) for 58% of respondents. Followed by dried fruits (47%) and vegetables (32%).

 

This practice of buying in bulk remains very much associated with buying organic products in stores, but even hypermarkets have started to do so.

Following the example of the CARREFOUR chain, which launched bulk purchases of traditional fresh products in March 2019. Customers can now bring their own containers to store food purchased from assisted selling departments (cheese, fish, deli meats, etc.).

Similarly, bulk silos for cereals or dried fruits are increasingly common in supermarkets.

This concept now extends to other segments such as olive oil, vinegar, juices and wine. The JEAN BOUTEILLE concept is one example.

 

Given the enthusiasm for bulk purchases, 100% bulk stores are developing. 

The “day by day” chain was created in 2013 and offers more than 750 products packaged in bulk. Customers can buy food, cosmetics, cleaning products and even petfood. It is a success with 48 stores in France at the moment. 15 to 20 new points of sale are planned by the end of 2019.

 

Online sales are also part of this approach with the LOOP E-commerce platform.

Around twenty multinationals (Coca Cola Company, Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, Mondelez,…) will offer around a hundred everyday products in returnable and reusable containers.

In partnership with TerraCycle, this platform will be launched in spring 2019 in Paris and New York as a first step. The objective will be to reach 600 references in one year and to offer this system in London, Toronto, Tokyo and San Francisco.

 

Will the return to deposit and purchase of bulk products soon become the norm?

 

You have a product / service innovation project? You want to test a concept? Evaluate your product / service? Contact-us

We will be happy to exchange with you, to offer you a tailor-made survey methodology and support throughout your project.

 

The LDB Mica Research Team


Sources:
Consommation durable, l’engagement de façade des classes supérieures
La vente en vrac séduit de plus en plus les consommateurs
Loop le site Ecommerce qui réinvente la consigne