Packaging is a major issue when considering the transition to a circular economy (Silva and Pålsson, 2022; Weinrich et al., 2024). Most packaging currently used in many industries is plastic, accounting for about 70% of the 350–400 million metric tons of yearly plastic waste (Zero Waste Europe, 2022). However, the design of plastic packaging is not always thought to be made to be recycled, according to the “take-make-use-waste” linear process, not a circular one; thus, this is reflected in over 30% of plastic going toward packaging production, which is not entirely recycled (Grand View Research, 2022), producing every year a “sheer volume of waste” (Mielinger and Weinrich, 2024). Thus, this is reflected in over 30% of plastic going toward packaging production, which is not entirely recycled (Grand View Research, 2022). This contrasts with the upcoming EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR, see, e.g., (Krahl, 2024), whose primary goal is to address the constant increase in packaging waste. The main objective is to reduce packaging waste in the EU by at least 15% by 2040 compared to 2018. The regulation focuses on improved recyclability of packaging, mandatory quotas for reusable packaging, and minimum recycled material content in packaging. Accordingly, increasing efforts are being devoted to identifying viable solutions to more sustainable packaging, one of which is the substitution of packaging materials such as plastic with circular materials, particularly for food packaging, which accounts for over two-thirds of total packaging production (Axelsson-Bakri et al., 2020). Among the circular materials with the highest potential for packaging are bioplastics, produced entirely from biomass, renewable sources (i.e., corn, sugarcane), or organic waste (Scarpi et al., 2021). One of the closest bioplastics soon to be marketed on a large scale is polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), “natural biodegradable polyesters synthesized by microorganisms” (Li et al., 2016). It is obtained in line with circular principles from organic food waste, including that produced at the household and retail level and by the food service sector. In line with the circular principle that “waste is a resource,” PHA is denoted by relevant environmental benefits than its traditional counterparts (e.g., Saavedra del Oso et al., 2023) and can be valorized with available technologies and practices to produce food packaging (Russo et al., 2019). In this study, we take the case of PHA packaging to investigate the “consumer's contribution as a customer of the circular economy” (Shevchenko et al., 2023, p. 2). Indeed, a major challenge for a circular transition, apart from the technological one, is the engagement of end consumers (Chenavaz and Dimitrov, 2024). They are primary stakeholders of the circular economy (Ghisellini et al., 2024) in that for actual circularity to take place, they must be actively involved in several processes (e.g., the sharing, reusing, and refurbishment of existing materials and products) to extend the life cycle of materials and products for as long as possible, ultimately “creating further value” (European Parliament, 2023). Not surprisingly, the role of consumers is being widely debated in the attempt to “frame, clarify and measure” (Shevchenko et al., 2023, p. 2) their actual contribution to the circular transition; recent evidence suggests that, despite a broader increase of the collective consciousness of ecological issues, consumers' support of circular products should not be taken for granted (Ghisellini et al., 2024), particularly when products involve sensitive issues for individuals (e.g., health-related issues). Hence, there is a need to clarify 1) how consumers feel about the circularity of products (i.e., how consumers perceive reusing products and materials that have been already used in the past or are obtained from used resources) (Baird et al., 2022), and 2) how such perceptions affect their decision-making processes with regards to circular products (e.g., Bigliardi et al., 2022). PHA food packaging embeds the potential ambivalence consumers may experience when facing the foundational circular concept that “waste is a resource”. While being, on the one hand, aware of the need to change consumption habits in favor of more sustainable alternatives, on the other hand, consumers may express concern about the quality and the origins of the raw materials employed in circular production (e.g., various sources of waste) (Aydin and Mansour, 2023); the picture might be even more complicated for some purchases involving health-related issues (e.g., food purchases). We tackle this ambivalence through the lenses of the theory of cognitive dissonance (Ghingold, 1981), which posits that people's behaviors derive from the fundamental individual need to maintain internal cognitive consistency. Accordingly, on the one hand, we start with the consideration that the nature of circular materials like PHA (i.e., deriving from organic waste) may generate feelings of disgust in consumers, especially when used to shelf products such as food (e.g., Baird et al., 2022). We therefore advance that, from a consumer decision-making perspective, such feelings may negatively affect consumers' perceived value of PHA packaging, reducing, in turn, the likelihood of adopting it. On the other hand, we also advance that such negative feelings might be -at least partially-offset by guilt. Prior studies (e.g., Nuojua et al., 2022) documented that this negative emotional state frequently accompanies consumer choices not oriented toward more sustainable alternatives (e.g., Shimul and Cheah, 2022). Following the increasingly compelling pressure of environmental issues in society, guilt has recently been proposed as a critical driver of consumer adoption of more sustainable behavior (e.g., Haj-Salem et al., 2022). Furthermore, this research compares consumers' reactions when PHA is used for high- and low-contact products, showing how the level of contact between the organic waste bioplastic and consumers' bodies can interact with the amount of perceived disgust and its impact on consumers’ willingness to adopt circular alternatives. This research provides some contributions. First, it takes a consumer's perspective on the circular economy, tackling the problem of circular transition from the perspective of a stakeholder group that has been, so far, quite under-researched (Shevchenko et al., 2023). Second, by focusing on bioplastic packaging, it further extends consumer-based research on the circular economy that, so far, has been largely focused on specific industrial sectors (e.g., refurbished consumer electronics, Bigliardi et al., 2022; Govindan et al., 2024). Third, it aims to contribute to research understanding consumers' drivers of adoption of circular products by exploring the antecedents of some key consumer outcomes (i.e., perceived value, Findrik and Meixner, 2023; willingness to choose circular alternatives, Coderoni and Perito, 2020). Fourth, it delves into the issue of “how people feel” (Baird et al., 2022, p. 1) about circular products, shedding light on the role of consumers' emotions in fostering the adoption of circular alternatives (Hellali and Koraï, 2023).
Consumer reactions to circular packaging: The impact of disgust, guilt, and value on adoption intentions
Ilenia Confente
;Ivan Russo
2024-01-01
Abstract
Packaging is a major issue when considering the transition to a circular economy (Silva and Pålsson, 2022; Weinrich et al., 2024). Most packaging currently used in many industries is plastic, accounting for about 70% of the 350–400 million metric tons of yearly plastic waste (Zero Waste Europe, 2022). However, the design of plastic packaging is not always thought to be made to be recycled, according to the “take-make-use-waste” linear process, not a circular one; thus, this is reflected in over 30% of plastic going toward packaging production, which is not entirely recycled (Grand View Research, 2022), producing every year a “sheer volume of waste” (Mielinger and Weinrich, 2024). Thus, this is reflected in over 30% of plastic going toward packaging production, which is not entirely recycled (Grand View Research, 2022). This contrasts with the upcoming EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR, see, e.g., (Krahl, 2024), whose primary goal is to address the constant increase in packaging waste. The main objective is to reduce packaging waste in the EU by at least 15% by 2040 compared to 2018. The regulation focuses on improved recyclability of packaging, mandatory quotas for reusable packaging, and minimum recycled material content in packaging. Accordingly, increasing efforts are being devoted to identifying viable solutions to more sustainable packaging, one of which is the substitution of packaging materials such as plastic with circular materials, particularly for food packaging, which accounts for over two-thirds of total packaging production (Axelsson-Bakri et al., 2020). Among the circular materials with the highest potential for packaging are bioplastics, produced entirely from biomass, renewable sources (i.e., corn, sugarcane), or organic waste (Scarpi et al., 2021). One of the closest bioplastics soon to be marketed on a large scale is polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA), “natural biodegradable polyesters synthesized by microorganisms” (Li et al., 2016). It is obtained in line with circular principles from organic food waste, including that produced at the household and retail level and by the food service sector. In line with the circular principle that “waste is a resource,” PHA is denoted by relevant environmental benefits than its traditional counterparts (e.g., Saavedra del Oso et al., 2023) and can be valorized with available technologies and practices to produce food packaging (Russo et al., 2019). In this study, we take the case of PHA packaging to investigate the “consumer's contribution as a customer of the circular economy” (Shevchenko et al., 2023, p. 2). Indeed, a major challenge for a circular transition, apart from the technological one, is the engagement of end consumers (Chenavaz and Dimitrov, 2024). They are primary stakeholders of the circular economy (Ghisellini et al., 2024) in that for actual circularity to take place, they must be actively involved in several processes (e.g., the sharing, reusing, and refurbishment of existing materials and products) to extend the life cycle of materials and products for as long as possible, ultimately “creating further value” (European Parliament, 2023). Not surprisingly, the role of consumers is being widely debated in the attempt to “frame, clarify and measure” (Shevchenko et al., 2023, p. 2) their actual contribution to the circular transition; recent evidence suggests that, despite a broader increase of the collective consciousness of ecological issues, consumers' support of circular products should not be taken for granted (Ghisellini et al., 2024), particularly when products involve sensitive issues for individuals (e.g., health-related issues). Hence, there is a need to clarify 1) how consumers feel about the circularity of products (i.e., how consumers perceive reusing products and materials that have been already used in the past or are obtained from used resources) (Baird et al., 2022), and 2) how such perceptions affect their decision-making processes with regards to circular products (e.g., Bigliardi et al., 2022). PHA food packaging embeds the potential ambivalence consumers may experience when facing the foundational circular concept that “waste is a resource”. While being, on the one hand, aware of the need to change consumption habits in favor of more sustainable alternatives, on the other hand, consumers may express concern about the quality and the origins of the raw materials employed in circular production (e.g., various sources of waste) (Aydin and Mansour, 2023); the picture might be even more complicated for some purchases involving health-related issues (e.g., food purchases). We tackle this ambivalence through the lenses of the theory of cognitive dissonance (Ghingold, 1981), which posits that people's behaviors derive from the fundamental individual need to maintain internal cognitive consistency. Accordingly, on the one hand, we start with the consideration that the nature of circular materials like PHA (i.e., deriving from organic waste) may generate feelings of disgust in consumers, especially when used to shelf products such as food (e.g., Baird et al., 2022). We therefore advance that, from a consumer decision-making perspective, such feelings may negatively affect consumers' perceived value of PHA packaging, reducing, in turn, the likelihood of adopting it. On the other hand, we also advance that such negative feelings might be -at least partially-offset by guilt. Prior studies (e.g., Nuojua et al., 2022) documented that this negative emotional state frequently accompanies consumer choices not oriented toward more sustainable alternatives (e.g., Shimul and Cheah, 2022). Following the increasingly compelling pressure of environmental issues in society, guilt has recently been proposed as a critical driver of consumer adoption of more sustainable behavior (e.g., Haj-Salem et al., 2022). Furthermore, this research compares consumers' reactions when PHA is used for high- and low-contact products, showing how the level of contact between the organic waste bioplastic and consumers' bodies can interact with the amount of perceived disgust and its impact on consumers’ willingness to adopt circular alternatives. This research provides some contributions. First, it takes a consumer's perspective on the circular economy, tackling the problem of circular transition from the perspective of a stakeholder group that has been, so far, quite under-researched (Shevchenko et al., 2023). Second, by focusing on bioplastic packaging, it further extends consumer-based research on the circular economy that, so far, has been largely focused on specific industrial sectors (e.g., refurbished consumer electronics, Bigliardi et al., 2022; Govindan et al., 2024). Third, it aims to contribute to research understanding consumers' drivers of adoption of circular products by exploring the antecedents of some key consumer outcomes (i.e., perceived value, Findrik and Meixner, 2023; willingness to choose circular alternatives, Coderoni and Perito, 2020). Fourth, it delves into the issue of “how people feel” (Baird et al., 2022, p. 1) about circular products, shedding light on the role of consumers' emotions in fostering the adoption of circular alternatives (Hellali and Koraï, 2023).
I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
