A majority of men around the world say they care about the planet and sustainability “now more than ever”, according to a new survey from Gillette.

The personal care brand questioned 5,504 men aged 18 to 50 across 11 countries and found over half (54%) said they cared about sustainability more than ever. The main drivers were long-term considerations for the future of the planet, with 66% saying sustainability was important for future generations, rather than people today (34%).

And 69% of men said sustainability was important for the global economy, with 31% believing it mattered for their communities’ businesses.

Men tend to prioritise environmental issues with clearly observable outcomes, such as access to clean water, recycling, the conservation of oceans, and protecting wildlife. These projects were generally preferred over less tangible ones such as reducing carbon emissions, or reducing supply chain inefficiencies. More than half of men (58%) feel pollution from plastic waste is a very important issue.

The survey also found that 95% of men say they have made at least one change in lifestyle in the past five years in order to support sustainability, such as shopping with reusable bags, recycling, and composting. Since the start of the pandemic, the main male focus has been reducing food waste.

The survey is further evidence of previous research showing that concerns about the environment and the issue of sustainability are now deeply embedded in the consumers’ psyche.

So-called conscious consumerism is on the rise, and sustainability no longer a brief trend, but a vital strategy for many brands.

Nielsen data published by WARC’s Admap last year showed that 46% of global consumers surveyed said they would be willing to forgo a brand name in order to buy environmentally friendly products.

Marketers are more than aware of this, with 84% of those surveyed in WARC’s Marketer’s Toolkit 2020 saying that conscious consumerism and sustainability – which WARC dubbed “the Greta effect" – would be influencing their marketing strategies over the next year.

Environmentally friendly supply chains were cited by 41% of respondents as a focus for their brand this year – 46% mentioned packaging as another important area as consumers increasingly judge brands on issues like single-use plastics and their efforts to cut carbon emissions.

Look out for The WARC Guide to Packaging, coming next week.

Sourced from Procter & Gamble; additional content by WARC staff