Sustainability struggles to gain momentum in influencing food/drink choices among Thais. When selecting food and drinks, Thai consumers prioritise intrinsic benefits such as health and convenience more so than other factors.
The Thai food and drink market is experiencing a rise in sustainability claims, reflecting a growing focus on eco-conscious practices. However, many Thais remain sceptical, harbouring doubts about the authenticity of these claims.
Localism is now emerging as a sweet spot for sustainability, driven by government initiatives. Supporting local farmers is becoming a key priority for Thai consumers, and this can be used to promote nutrition and sustainable sourcing.
Read this Report to find out how brands can make sustainability intuitive in consumers’ daily lives, how brands can build trust in their sustainability claims made by food/drink brands and how to drive appeal through local sourcing.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Key factors when choosing packaged food or drinks
- Awareness of sustainability terms in packaged food or drinks
- Trust in sustainability claims made by food or drink brands
- Brands’ efforts  to build trust in sustainability claims
- Habits consumers have developed to support environmental sustainability in the last six months
- Sustainability practices consumers believe food/drink brands should prioritise
Make sustainability intuitive, build trust in claims with measurable goals and sustainable sourcing, and add value by supporting local farmers.
Rashmika Khanijou, Senior Analyst
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Mintel’s perspective
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Overview
- The outlook of sustainability in packaged food and drinks in Thailand
- Environmental challenges like food waste and the climate crisis are driving sustainability in the packaged food and beverage industry
- Highlight waste reduction initiatives to turn consumers’ daily habits into meaningful impact
- Graph 1: actions taken regularly to show care for environmental sustainability during the last six months, 2024
- Sustainability claims from brands face scepticism among many Thais, particularly Gen X
- Supporting local farmers is a crucial sustainability effort valued by Thai consumers in food and drink brands
- Graph 2: sustainable practices that consumers think brands in food/drink categories should prioritise in their business plans, 2024
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MARKET CONTEXT IN SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES
- What you need to know
- Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economic Model is directing Thailand’s businesses
- The Thai government is driving initiatives for plastic waste management
- In addition to plastic waste, food waste is emerging as a significant challenge in the Thai market, surpassing other ASEAN regions
- Thai government is pushing ahead with the Climate Change Bill
- Thailand is hosting ASEAN’s sustainability expo anually, driving greater consumer awareness on the matter
- Despite efforts by the government and brands, sustainability continues to struggle in shaping food and drink choices among Thais
- Graph 3: top three most important factors considered when choosing packaged food and/or drinks, 2022 vs 2024
- Pollution and climate emergencies are top concerns among Thais
- Graph 4: biggest concerns*, 2024
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WHAT CONSUMERS WANT AND WHY
- What you need to know
- Tackle waste by making sustainable choices intuitive rather than forcing their adoption
- Health aspirations strongly shape the food and drink preferences of Thai consumers
- Lifestyle shifts prioritise convenience over sustainability in meal preparation and choices
- Sustainability is second nature: weave sustainability into health and convenience
- Graph 5: top three most important factors considered when choosing packaged food and/or drinks – any rank, 2024
- The ‘smart choice’ – put nutrition at the front and quantify how the product also benefits the environment
- Highlight food and packaging waste reduction initiatives to transform effortless daily habits into meaningful impact
- Graph 6: actions taken regularly to show care for environmental sustainability during the last six months, 2024
- Promote renewed versions of contemporary food to reduce waste
- Offer single-serve portion-controlled foods to promote convenience and inherently reduce waste
- Crownless pineapples: Sainsbury’s makes life easier and reduces food waste by removing and recycling the non-consumed parts of fruits
- Promote shelf stability to reduce food waste, with convenience as a key value
- Help consumers reuse cooked food staples such as rice
- Reusable packaging is gaining momentum among Bangkok residents
- Graph 7: consumers that have been reusing food and drink packaging to show their care for environmental sustainability during the last six months, by region, 2024
- Opportunity to embrace ‘reusability’ as a sustainable packaging solution
- Graph 8: share of product launches with ‘environmentally friendly package’ claims, by top 20 sub-categories, 2022-25
- Promote refill-ability to enhance convenience and minimise packaging waste
- Get creative in showing how food packaging can be repurposed
- Sustainability jargon is not widely understood – use simple, relatable language in communications
- Graph 9: awareness and understanding of terms in packaged food and/or drinks, 2024
- Use everyday language instead of technical terms
- Making carbon messaging clear and consumer-friendly
- Upcycling: a good method through which to combat food waste, but needs to be made simple through a focus on intrinsic benefits
- Promote upcycling to combat food waste: highlight the taste, texture and nutritional advantages of using imperfect produce
- Sustainable sourcing: drive consumer confidence in sustainability claims
- The Thai food and drink market is seeing a surge in diverse sustainability claims
- Graph 10: share of product launches in food/drink categories, by ethical claims, 2022-25
- Many Thais view sustainability claims as mere ‘greenwashing’ and are demanding climate justice
- Many Thais, particularly Gen X, remain sceptical of brands’ sustainability claims
- Graph 11: trust in sustainability claims of food and/or drink brands, 2024
- Key elements for building confidence in sustainability claims: Thais seek validation, not flashy marketing
- Graph 12: actions taken by packaged food and/or drink brands that would increase trust in sustainability claims, 2024
- Clear, trackable goals and communications on progress give consumers confidence
- Share public updates to showcase brand’s journey and progress towards sustainability goals
- ‘Sustainable sourcing’ is key to maximising trust in claims
- Plant-based milk leads the food and drink market in terms of sustainability claims
- Graph 13: share of food and drink launches with sustainable habitat/resources claim, by sub-category, 2022-25
- Prioritise the use of sustainable ingredients to enhance credibility and maximise consumer trust in their sustainability claims
- Transforming food waste into sustainable ingredients: giving discarded produce a second life
- Thais are more likely to buy sustainable, planet-friendly products than to cut back on environmentally harmful ones
- Graph 14: behaviours to show care for environmental sustainability during the last six months, 2024
- Curious minds: evolving knowledge on plant-based nutrition and sustainable sources pave the way for novel protein sources
- Promote sustainable choices with the nutritional benefits of novel plant proteins beyond soy
- Innovate with and educate on pea protein: a novel plant protein source that holds market potential and has a nutritional and sustainability edge
- Leveraging organic claims to effectively communicate sustainable sourcing
- Graph 15: share of product launches in select food/drink categories, by organic claims, 2022-25
- Under the organic umbrella, opportunity exists to promote soil and wildlife support in fresh produce, dairy and alternative products
- Graph 16: consumers that think brands in different food/drink categories should prioritise promoting farming that supports soil and wildlife in their business plans, 2024
- Fresh foods can focus on regenerative farming initiatives that protect soil health
- Feature regenerative organic ingredients and promote soil health, alongside nutrition
- Promote regenerative organic dairy farming: ‘milk made with grass-fed cows fed an all-organic diet’
- Sweet spot for sustainability: localism
- The government is launching initiatives to support local farmers and promote the use of Thai-sourced products
- ‘Farm to Table’ concept is increasingly being embraced by the Thai foodservice sector
- Localism: Thai consumers want to see from food/drink brands supporting local farmers
- Graph 17: sustainable practices that consumers think brands in food/drink categories should prioritise in their business plans, 2024
- Case study: Nestle supports local Thai coffee farmers, enhancing both coffee quality and livelihoods
- Older Thais lead the change in choosing locally grown foods in environmental sustainability
- Highlight regional origins and elevate local ingredients by creating new menus
- Innovate by leveraging local Thai fruits and herbs  and highlight regional origins to communicate quality
- 1. Locally grown foods can meet the demand for nutrition and freshness
- Add value to local produce by highlighting their nutritional benefits, and drive support of local farmers
- 2. Locally grown foods can meet consumers’ existing food and packaging waste reduction efforts
- 3. Locally grown foods can promote sustainable sourcing
- Make it effortless for consumers to source locally grown produce and reduce travel distances
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APPENDIX
- Consumer research methodology
- Consumer research questions
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