Carbon Label at a University Restaurant – Label Implementation and Evaluation

Changes in human diets hold significant greenhouse gas emissions mitigation potential. In this paper, we use a field experiment to analyze the effects of implementing a label with greenhouse gas emission information for each dish at a restaurant. The traffic-light colored label was implemented in a student catering facility with 300–600 servings every day, and covered all seven dishes on offer. Individual level sales data including an anonymous identification number, gender, and age was collected both during the label phase and during a five-week control phase prior to the introduction of the label. We found that sales of green labeled (low emission) meat dishes increased by 11.5% compared to the control phase, whereas sales of red labeled meat dishes were reduced by 4.8%. Although the label had an effect on consumer behavior, emissions decreased modestly by 3.6%. We did not find evidence for different reactions to the label based on gender or age.

[1]  Susan T. Fiske,et al.  Attention and weight in person perception: The impact of negative and extreme behavior. , 1980 .

[2]  G. Spaargaren,et al.  Consumer Responses to the Carbon Labelling of Food: A Real Life Experiment in a Canteen Practice , 2013 .

[3]  H. Steinfeld,et al.  Greenhouse gas emissions from ruminant supply chains – a global life cycle assessment , 2013 .

[4]  G. Grankvist,et al.  The Impact of Environmental Labelling on Consumer Preference: Negative vs. Positive Labels , 2004 .

[5]  Klaus G. Grunert,et al.  Attention mediates the effect of nutrition label information on consumers’ choice. Evidence from a choice experiment involving eye-tracking , 2014, Appetite.

[6]  P. Martinsson,et al.  Do people avoid opportunities to donate?: A natural field experiment on recycling and charitable giving , 2013 .

[7]  A. Tversky,et al.  Prospect theory: analysis of decision under risk , 1979 .

[8]  Jim Yates,et al.  Customer Response to Carbon Labelling of Groceries , 2011 .

[9]  Liesbet Vranken,et al.  Food Labeling and Eco-Friendly Consumption: Experimental Evidence From a Belgian Supermarket , 2014 .

[10]  K. Grunert,et al.  Sustainability Labels on Food Products: Consumer Motivation, Understanding and Use , 2014 .

[11]  M. Sutton,et al.  Food choices, health and environment: Effects of cutting Europe's meat and dairy intake , 2014 .

[12]  Michael Siegrist,et al.  Does better for the environment mean less tasty? Offering more climate-friendly meals is good for the environment and customer satisfaction , 2015, Appetite.

[13]  Bas Eickhout,et al.  Climate benefits of changing diet , 2009 .

[14]  I. Vermeir,et al.  Sustainable Food Consumption: Exploring the Consumer “Attitude – Behavioral Intention” Gap , 2006 .

[15]  S. Wirsenius,et al.  The importance of reduced meat and dairy consumption for meeting stringent climate change targets , 2014, Climatic Change.

[16]  L. Mogensen,et al.  The global warming potential of two healthy Nordic diets compared with the average Danish diet , 2012, Climatic Change.

[17]  Kristina Mohlin,et al.  Greenhouse gas taxes on animal food products: rationale, tax scheme and climate mitigation effects , 2011 .

[18]  Heléne Tjärnemo,et al.  Challenges of carbon labelling of food products: a consumer research perspective , 2011 .

[19]  J. Cacioppo,et al.  Negative information weighs more heavily on the brain: The negativity bias in evaluative categorizations. , 1998 .

[20]  C. N. Hewitt,et al.  The relative greenhouse gas impacts of realistic dietary choices , 2012 .

[21]  Katarina Elofsson,et al.  Got green milk? Field Experimental Trail of Consumer Demand for a Climate Label , 2014 .

[22]  M. Vandenbergh,et al.  Predicting consumer demand responses to carbon labels , 2015 .

[23]  Roberto A. Weber,et al.  Exploiting moral wiggle room: experiments demonstrating an illusory preference for fairness , 2007 .

[24]  A. Tversky,et al.  Prospect Theory : An Analysis of Decision under Risk Author ( s ) : , 2007 .

[25]  J. D. Jonge,et al.  The Positive Side of Negative Labelling , 2015 .

[26]  Kristian Steensen Nielsen,et al.  A better carbon footprint label , 2016 .

[27]  Charlotte Leire,et al.  Product-related environmental information to guide consumer purchases - a review and analysis of research on perceptions, understanding and use among Nordic consumers , 2005 .

[28]  P. Upham,et al.  Carbon labelling of grocery products: public perceptions and potential emissions reductions , 2011 .

[29]  D. Stolle,et al.  Swedish Political Consumers : Who They Are and Why They Use the Market as an Arena for Politics , 2005 .

[30]  Dorothée Brécard,et al.  Determinants of demand for green products: An application to eco-label demand for fish in Europe , 2009 .

[31]  U. Sonesson,et al.  How can the EU climate targets be met? A combined analysis of technological and demand-side changes in food and agriculture , 2016 .

[32]  Erica van Herpen,et al.  Front-of-pack nutrition labels. Their effect on attention and choices when consumers have varying goals and time constraints , 2011, Appetite.

[33]  B. Frostell,et al.  Protein efficiency per unit energy and per unit greenhouse gas emissions: Potential contribution of diet choices to climate change mitigation , 2011 .