Food For Thought: Can Nudging On Food Products Reduce Carbon Footprint?

Sammanfattning: In addressing ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions related to private consumption, we test whether nudging can be used to influence Swedish consumers' food choices in a more sustainable direction - that is, reducing their meat and fish consumption. We design two pro-environmental nudge schemes that speak to different decision-making processes: one cognitive and one affective. An online experiment with 625 student subjects from Stockholm is carried out to assess the effect of these nudge schemes in reducing the CO2 equivalent footprint associated with meat, fish and plant-based substitute consumption in a retail (grocery store) setting among consumers in Sweden. We find that neither nudge scheme has a significant effect on the CO2 equivalent footprint. This is an indication that pro-environmental nudging is not an effective tool to reduce meat consumption and decrease the environmental impact that it is associated with.