A new survey shows 72 percent of respondents put the cost of living as their number one concern. Photo: 123RF
Households struggling with the cost of living are ignoring concerns and actions about the environment and sustainability, according to a new survey.
A Kantar research report done in conjunction with the Sustainable Business Council (SBC) showed 72 percent of respondents put the cost of living as their number one concern, with an overwhelming 90 percent saying it is the main factor when they buy goods and services.
The survey also showed that consumers were less interested in making "eco-conscious" choices.
The protection of children and tackling crime were the second and third ranked concerns, with environmental issues in the bottom half of the top 10 issues.
Kantar's sustainable transformation practice lead Jason Cate said it was no surprise that mounting economic concerns should take people's attention.
"The fact that the two areas of concern that saw the largest year-on-year increase - the state of the NZ economy and managing personal debt - were also cost-related further highlights the acute financial pressures and challenging economic headwinds New Zealanders are currently facing," Cate said in a statement.
Housing, health and violence in society also figured highly.
The first environmental issue to rate was the build-up of plastics in seventh place, followed by extreme weather events, which was a new issue to capture attention, as was ocean plastics.
Overall the survey showed an 11 percent drop in the number of people claiming to be committed to a sustainable lifestyle, although just over half remained concerned about the impact of climate change.
SBC executive director Mike Burrell said a similar dip in the commitment to sustainability occurred when the pandemic first hit.
"The fact that there remains a heightened concern around climate change is promising, and suggests we'll see this commitment increase again once we're through these economic headwinds," he said in a statement.
It was necessary to tackle the immediate problems, but businesses had a responsibility to keep up the momentum on environmental and sustainability, he said.
"In the short term, they can do their best to make products affordable, be supportive of their workforce, and partner with government where they can in order to alleviate this economic pain. At the same time, they also need to be continuing with their three to five year investments that are working towards bending the emissions curve and adapting to a warmer planet."
The report surveyed 1000 New Zealanders and has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percent.