Consumers Back Carbon Footprint Labelling

The majority of consumers would like to see products labelled with information about their carbon footprint, a new survey has found.

Conducted on behalf of the Carbon Trust, the research found that 67 per cent of consumers support the introduction of a recognisable carbon label on products to show that companies are committed to reducing their carbon footprint and are taking steps to reduce it.

People from the US, Canada, UK, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the Netherlands were questioned for the study. The results also found that 66 per cent of consumers would “feel more positively” about a company that can demonstrate it’s making an effort to cut its emissions.

Should this kind of scheme be introduced, it may encourage businesses of all sizes to think about every element of their production process, including where they get their energy from.

Managing director for business services at the Carbon Trust Hugh Jones said that there is “a real transformative power in getting consumers to change their everyday purchasing decisions to favour low-carbon products”.

However, Mr Jones stressed that consumers are unlikely to make these changes if they don’t have access to reliable information. He added that a carbon label “enables consumers to use their wallets to choose companies that are taking action on climate change”.

Last month, chief executive of the Climate Change Committee Chris Stark urged businesses to start moving towards being carbon neutral now, rather than waiting for legislation to be introduced.

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