Bottom line more important than environment: Nielsen

Nielsen released results of a survey that showed that while a strong majority of Canadians express concern for the environment, they are unwilling to pay more for eco-friendly products.

“Between economic ups and downs and rising fuel, energy, and food prices, Canadians are focused on managing the household budget and their personal bottom line,” said Carman Allison, director, Shopper & Industry Insights, Nielsen in a release. “With today’s recovering economy, it’s no surprise there is far more concern for the financial environment than the actual environment.”

The survey found that 12 per cent of Canadians and Americans said they would pay more for environmentally friendly products than comparable non-eco-friendly alternatives–significantly lower than the global average.

Meanwhile, almost 80 per cent of Canadians expressed strong agreement on the need for companies to contribute to environmental enhancements and to operate in an environmentally sustainable manner.

Among the most helpful “sustainable” or environmentally friendly effort that manufacturers can take, Canadians cited recycled or minimal packaging and energy efficient products.

Nielsen’s 2011 Global Online Environment & Sustainability Survey gathered the opinions of more than 25,000 Internet respondents in 51 countries, including Canada.