Sodexo and Harris Interactive reveal the results of the first international sustainable food barometer

Sodexo reveals the results of the first international sustainable food barometer carried out in partnership with the research and opinion polls institute Harris Interactive. 

Conducted in 2023 among more than 5,000 people in Brazil, France, the United Kingdom and the United States, this exclusive study breaks down the disparities between people's representations of sustainable food and their associated behaviors for the first time. 

This action-oriented barometer aims to identify the concrete obstacles as well as the levers to induce changes in eating habits and accelerate the shift towards more sustainable diets.

First takeaway: The awareness of the urgent need to change eating habits is not only well-established, but also positively perceived

• Overall, 75% of people surveyed have a positive perception of sustainable food, as they spontaneously associate it with feelings such as optimism and pleasure. 59% of them believe that adopting a more sustainable diet improves their quality of life.
• Awareness of the urgent need to change our eating habits is now universal: across all generations and all income categories, nearly 8 out of 10 respondents (79%) believe that adopting more sustainable behaviors is an urgent matter.
• The majority of people aspire to eat in a more sustainable way in all the out-of-home food places they use every day: restaurants, schools, universities and company restaurants.
• A majority of respondents say they have already adopted sustainable food habits: 71% say they reduce their waste, 63% eat seasonal produce and 55% buy local produce whenever possible.

Second takeaway: a gap between aspirations and actual behaviors

• The urgency feeling comes up against entrenched eating habits.
• The barometer highlights a discrepancy between people's perception of their food and its actual sustainability. 56% think their food is already sustainable. Yet for example, dairy products (78%) and meat (71%) remain among the most regularly consumed products, far ahead of cereals (60%) and plant-based proteins (45%), with a notably lower carbon footprint.
• According to the study, the changes that people are prepared to make are more a matter of adjustments than actual in-depth transformations. For example, when asked about the alternatives they might introduce into their diet, respondents answer with products they already consume. To replace meat, they mention eggs or dairy products. On the other hand, the barometer reveals a certain reluctance to embrace little-known alternatives such as seaweed and insects.
• In their everyday food choices, consumers prioritize cost (73%) and taste (62%) over the product's environmental impact (30%).
• Sustainable food suffers from several misconceptions: 40% of those surveyed believed it is more expensive, and a third of citizens feel that it is difficult to find sustainable products and believe that adopting a sustainable diet requires effort.

Third takeaway: the benefits of sustainable food are more motivating when perceived as individual rather than collective.

• Convincing people to adopt more sustainable eating habits means demonstrating the individual benefits regarding health, taste, and savings.
• According to the barometer, in all countries, the primary motivation for eating more sustainably in all countries is the expected health benefits (46%). This is generally followed by the expected financial savings (35%).