Investigating Consumer‐Centric Sustainable Food Packaging Challenges and Preferences: A Cross‐Cultural Analysis From Seven European Countries in a GenZ and Millennials Population

ABSTRACT Sustainability is an ongoing global challenge, and food packaging waste is a notable contributor with a range of consumer‐centric barriers necessary to be overcome. There is a lack of knowledge resulting in widespread mismatch in awareness versus appropriate practices and considerable variability in recycling rates depending on the region and/or country. This study aims to explore cross‐cultural commonalities and differences in sustainable food packaging from a purchase, disposal, and communication viewpoint to inform future education‐based campaigns. Consumers ( n = 2960; 18–42 years) from seven European countries—Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, and Spain—completed a validated survey. Excessive packaging, limited choice of packaging and expensive were key issues that modulated purchase‐based decisions from a food packaging perspective with fresh produce and dairy as key categories. Mixed materials, aluminum and plastic were packaging materials considered difficult to dispose with noteworthy challenges including no clear instructions or nearby bins. Most preferred formats for acquiring information were videos, infographics, and short articles with recyclability and disposal icons being key topics of interest. The role of food packaging was more dominant in Spain resulting in more purchase and disposal issues; contrarily, fewer issues were evident in Denmark, and food packaging impact was perceived less influential. Consumer insights will inform subsequent campaign design by utilizing short/digestible formats expressing topics of interest that are most likely to resonate with consumers. Involving the quadruple helix (government, industry, research, and community) is needed to support the sustainable transformation of food packaging ecosystem and related consumer behaviors across Europe.