Sustainable consumer packaged goods (CPG) in the U.S. continue to gain ground, but still fall far short of market share levels seen in the United Kingdom and Germany, according to the newly released 2024 Sustainable Market Share Index.
The research, published by NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business, found that sustainable products now account for 23.8% of the U.S. market, up from 21.2% last year. In comparison, sustainable products represent 36.8% of the market in the U.K. and 42.0% in Germany.
“Sustainability isn’t just a trend; it’s a business imperative,” said Joan Driggs, Vice President of Content and Thought Leadership at Circana. “This research demonstrates that products marketed as sustainable are not only performing well but outpacing conventional goods in growth.”
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The report shows that U.S. sustainable products have posted a 12.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over five years, 2.3 times faster than conventional products. However, they still carry a 26.6% average price premium over non-sustainable goods. In Europe, that price gap is far lower, at or below 5%.
The findings highlight an ongoing shift in consumer demand and underscore potential pressure points in the CPG supply chain as brands increasingly pivot to sustainable sourcing, packaging, and distribution.
“We are encouraged to see that even with continued inflation, price premiums remain stable and sustainable products continue to eat into the market share of conventional products,” said Randi Kronthal-Sacco, Senior Scholar at NYU Stern CSB, who leads the research.
Since 2013, sustainable CPG products in the U.S. have grown their market share by 9.2 percentage points, with 19 of 36 tracked categories seeing a 10% or greater increase in sustainable market share.
