Will people pay more for an eco-friendly product?

Producing foods and beverages in a sustainable way often means added costs. So IFIC posed this hypothetical scenario:

Imagine you go to the store to buy a specific item and find three options. One costs $3 and has an icon indicating it is "not very eco-friendly." Another costs $5 and is labeled as "somewhat eco-friendly." The third costs $7 and is "very eco-friendly."

Which would you choose?

What's the relationship between food and stress?

It goes in both directions, the survey found: Stress affects the foods we choose, and the foods we choose can cause stress.

It's a topic IFIC began asking about following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, which created both economic insecurity and food insecurity.

"COVID uncovered a lot of angst or potential sources of stress that a lot of people had to face," Sollid said.

Four years in, nearly two-thirds of those surveyed are grappling with a significant amount of stress, up from 60% in 2023.

What are we so stressed about?

Money and health issues remain the biggest sources of stress among those who said they were "very" or "somewhat" stressed. Food choices are weighing on the minds of nearly 1 in 4 people in this category.

Are we eating our feelings?

Some of us are. Nearly two-thirds of people said their mental and emotional well-being had a significant or moderate impact on their diet.

Among those who were at least somewhat stressed, about half said their food and beverage choices suffered as a result. However, a small number responded to stress by seeking out healthier options.

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