QSR September 2022

CLIMATE RESPONSIBILITY / CONTINUED FROM PAGE 51

perception of efforts around these concerns. The industry over all shows low scores in the “trust” category of Converseon’s study, and environmental efforts have potential for bolstering consumer faith in concepts. Widespread consumer concern over sustainability efforts was also indicated in a recent survey of 7,000 global consumers con ducted by Censuswide and Deliverect, a delivery management platform, and released in April. The survey focused on customers’ sustainability expectations as related to off-premises orders and found that, while 65 percent of customers find sustainable dining to be more expensive, almost half (43 percent) are willing to pay more for visible sustainability efforts on the part of brands—even efforts like curbing food waste that, ultimately, save revenues for the brand itself. “We think con sumers always want more, but actually in this case, it’s sometimes less is more,” Zhong Xu, CEO and cofounder of Deliverect, says. “Consumers hate waste. Which is actually good news, right? Inf la tion and food costs are rising for restaurants; maybe instead of increasing your prices, because customers are very sensitive about pricing, how about you make it a bit more sustainable, and make your portion size 10 percent less?” Deliverect’s survey found that more than 50 percent of customers are frustrated by large amounts of food waste, and see food waste as an issue that will stop them from ordering from an offending restaurant twice. An even greater percentage (63 percent) of sur

veyed customers reported that sustainable packaging is important to them, with more than half preferring to order from a brand that removes excess packaging from its orders. Xu recommends brands research sustainability strategies that are “low threshold” for the consumer, recommending efforts that add marginal price increases to menus. But equally impactful to new initiatives is brand communication about efforts already in place. While consumers surveyed by Deliverect and Censuswide indi cated they perceived Chick-fil-A, Panera Bread, and Starbucks to be the most sustainable companies based on in-store and delivery experiences, a majority, 56 percent, feel concepts as a whole are not transparent about sustainability practices. Furthermore, over half of the consumers reported a desire for restaurants to better show how they are in the process of making orders more sustainable. While companies should steer clear from overstating efforts—Converseon’s Taylor warns that this could result in harmful consumer perceptions of brands “greenwashing” or purposefully disseminating misleading information and could further deplete consumer trust—a focus on a concept’s core values can help improve brand-to-consumer communication around ESG. “It’s not just about packaging, it’s about storytelling,” Xu says. “If you make the effort to tell your brand’s story, customers will care.” q

Rachel Pittman is a regular contributor to Food News Media and is based in North Carolina.

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SEPTEMBER 2022 | QSR | www.qsrmagazine.com