Consumers Buying More ‘Green’ Since Start of Recession

Though conventional wisdom may suggest that consumers are buying fewer environmentally friendly products because of the economic downturn, a new study shows that consumers in the US, UK and Japan actually are placing more emphasis on buying so-called  “green” items than they did before the recession began, according to (***pdf) a survey from Penn, Schoen & Berland and JWT, writes Environmental Leader.
The study shows that the purchase of products now that are environmentally friendly has increased slightly over pre-recession times, going from 15% to 16%, while the purchase of products based on quality, convenience and ethics has decreased:
Moreover, survey respondents expect to buy even more green items once the recession bottoms out:

Price Still Biggest Barrier
Although purchase of “green” products and services continues to grow – potentially because of increasing environmental consciousness – consumers still say price is the biggest barrier to purchasing them. Among US consumers, 35%  share this viewpoint, with corresponding figures of 31% in the UK and 43% in Japan.
Recent research from Generate Insight found that teens say they are passing on green purchases in order to save money, while a different survey from Enviromedia Social Marketing shows that four of five consumers are purchasing green items.
According to a study by the Grocery Manufacturer’s Association and Deloitte, 54% of shoppers consider environmental sustainability characteristics in their buying decisions; however, only 22% actually buy green products on their shopping trips.