Nudges to Promote Sustainable Food Choices in Icelandic Grocery Stores

Abstract

To reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the food sector, household food consumptions need to become more sustainable. A part of the solution can be to increase the share of environmentally certified products on the market. One way to encourage people to purchase more environmentally certified products is to use “nudging” as an intervention method. The nudging method utilises theories from psychology and related disciplines on the bounded rationality of humans in decision making. This knowledge is used to design environments that alter people’s behaviour in a predictable way.The aim of this thesis is twofold. Firstly, to overview green nudges and environmental initiatives currently in place in three Icelandic grocery stores: Krónan, Bónus and Nettó. The thesis also includes suggestions on how the grocery chains can use nudges to a bigger degree. The second part of the thesis analyses the impact of incorporating eco-labelled products into ‘normal’ shelves in an Icelandic grocery store.The overview showed that the amount and variety of nudges to promote sustainable consumption varies greatly between the grocery chains. All three chains can increase the number of green nudges in their stores substantially. The chains are especially encouraged to utilize the online store environment to promote sustainable food choices. The results from the change of moving eco-labelled products from a separate section to normal shelves in the store had a negative impact on sales of these products overall.