NEW YORK—As extreme weather prompts growing environmental concern across the globe, new research from Bain & Company, a leading global consultancy, shows more than 60 percent of businesses are off track to meet their current sustainability goals. Progress will require a combination of technology, policy and behavior change. An increasingly conscious base of consumers and employees may prove helpful, however.

Bain’s global survey of 23,000 consumers reflected a broad sense of environmental concerns around the world. Some 64 percent of people reported high levels of concern about sustainability. Most said their worries have intensified over the past two years and that their concern was first prompted by extreme weather.

This major survey is part of Bain’s Sustainability Impact Leadership Team’s efforts to help CEOs navigate a rapidly changing world and tackle sustainability goals. A new and extensive CEO’s Sustainability Guide report was published in November 2023. The entire report is downloadable here.

Among the survey’s vast amount of information, its polling of consumer attitudes shows how concerns are elevated. Some of the key conclusions include:

New research by Bain’s Global Consumer Lab has helped us understand consumers’ views on sustainability and how they are influencing buying behavior.

Companies selling sustainability need to acknowledge and address a fragmented consumer base—not assume that developed-market or younger consumers are more concerned about the environment, for example.

Different consumer segments define sustainability differently, and many make choices based on misconceptions.

Companies tend to focus on technology adoption when devising strategic plans, but regulations and consumer behavior are moving just as quickly and have as big an impact.

Bain’s research reveals several surprising truths about consumers, dispelling some common misperceptions. Among them, the ideas that consumers won’t pay more for sustainable products and that consumer behavior is fixed.


Baby Boomers are often just as concerned as Gen Z. Many companies have long viewed younger consumers as more focused on sustainability than their older counterparts, but the reality is not as clear-cut. For example, 72 percent of Gen Z consumers and 68 percent of Boomers globally are very or extremely concerned about the environment, but in countries as diverse as India, France and Japan, Boomers are more concerned.

Both liberals and conservatives are concerned about the environment. In the U.S., 96 percent of consumers agree that the climate is changing. Among those concerned about the environment in the U.S., 85 percent of self-described liberal voters are very or extremely concerned about climate change, compared with 39 percent of conservative voters. Yet conservatives say they worry more about specific issues such as water, biodiversity loss, and air pollution.

Consumers are willing to pay a premium for sustainable products, 12 percent on average, but they are still priced too high. As concerns grow, consumers are looking to make environmentally sound choices and are willing to pay more for sustainable products. Yet, they often run into barriers. For example, consumers in the U.S. are willing to pay an average premium of 11 percent for products with a minimized environmental impact. However, 28 percent is the average premium for products marketed as sustainable in the U.S. Consumers in fast growing markets, where Bain found environmental concerns to be highest—such as India, Indonesia, Brazil and China—are willing to pay an even greater premium, between 15 percent and 20 percent. Consumers in the UK, Italy, Germany and France, on the other hand, are only willing to pay between 8 percent and 10 percent extra.

Consumer behavior can change more quickly than many companies anticipate, with external factors such as government regulation heavily influencing the market.

There is a disconnect between what consumers want and what most companies sell. Worldwide, 48 percent of consumers consider how products are used when thinking about sustainability. These consumers are more concerned about how a product can be reused, its durability, and how it will minimize waste. In contrast, most companies sell sustainable goods based on factors such as how they are made, their natural ingredients, and the farming practices deployed. These factors cause many consumers to conflate “sustainable” with “premium.” One result of this disconnect: Nearly half of all developed-market consumers believe that living sustainably is too expensive. By comparison, roughly 35 percent of consumers in fast-growing markets believe this.

Consumers struggle to identify sustainable products and don’t trust corporations to make them. In Bain’s survey, 50 percent of consumers said sustainability is one of their top four key purchase criteria when shopping. Yet they may be making decisions based on misconceptions. When asked to determine which of two given products generated higher carbon emissions, consumers were wrong or didn’t know about 75 percent of the time. Consumers said they rely mostly on labels and certifications to identify sustainable products, yet most were unable to accurately describe the meaning behind common sustainability logos, such as organic production or Fairtrade. A lack of trust in corporations compounds the issue. Bain found only 28 percent of consumers trust large corporations to create genuinely sustainable products, compared to 45 percent who trust small, independent businesses.

“We have spoken to thousands of executives about their sustainability ambitions and the associated trade-offs,” said François Faelli, partner and head of the global Sustainability practice at Bain & Company. “They know they have a key role to play in the energy and resources transition. Many view this as their legacy, but they are worried about the growing gap between their progress and public commitments.

“While it will not be easy, there are three levers that CEOs must prioritize: policy, technology and behavior. Bain’s new research offers some promising news for businesses—their customers and employees are adaptable and eager to contribute along the path to progress,” Faelli said.