Sustainability largely overlooked in e-commerce – environment agency report
Clean Energy Wire
Sustainability barely plays a role as Germans shop online, a report by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) found.
Second-hand, repaired, or rented products are not marketed prominently on online platforms, with search engines, comparison portals, and recommendation algorithms primarily promoting and incentivising quick purchases of new products, the authors concluded. The report aimed to find how digital consumer information needs to be designed to promote sustainable purchase habits compared to the status quo.
As more and more people buy products online, they prioritise prices, convenience, and quick availability over sustainability criteria, the authors found. Moreover, consumers feel uncertain about second-hand products – voicing concerns about quality, hygiene, condition, or limited buyer protection – and are thus enticed to buy new. Those purchasing sustainable options usually already have a strong motivation to do so, or buy them if they are prominently advertised in the purchasing process, write the authors.
“People who buy online typically find the cheapest product – but rarely the most sustainable one. That has to change if we want to make consumption sustainable,” UBA head Dirk Messner said. He called for businesses behind shopping platforms to take responsibility and make sustainable alternatives more visible, as these often encouraged buying new, impulse purchases, or continued shopping.
“An important lever for sustainable purchasing decisions is to embed sustainability more firmly in platform structures,” UBA wrote in a press release. The report recommends to better integrate circular offers into existing online shops, to certify the quality of products through uniform standards and transparent sustainability labels, and to improve the visibility of repair services in the digital space.
Sustainable consumption is gaining importance in environmental policy, with both the EU and Germany publishing action plans to push for more resource-efficient, climate friendly, and circular consumption. Systemic changes within companies and policies can help ensure that the most convenient option is also the most climate friendly.
