The market for eco-friendly and natural household products is growing and the gap separating mainstream and natural household consumers is narrowing in the US. Purchase Mintel’s US Natural Household Consumer Report to discover how environmental considerations influence the usage and purchase household care products.
Below, we’ve handpicked the key insights from the report and summarised the core topics.Â
Key Issues Covered in this Report
- Sales trends for eco-friendly homecare products.
- Innovation and competitive dynamics.
- Incidence of and change in eco-friendly homecare product use.
- Retail channel preference.
- Consumers’ preferred product attributes and claims.
- Consumers’ cleaning goals relative to eco-friendly brand attributes.
- Attitudes and behaviours related to eco-friendly homecare products.
The Natural Household Consumer in the US
The percentage of consumers who use a combination of both natural and mainstream homecare products grew significantly in 2023, from 36% in 2022 to 40%. Natural household consumers cite health and sustainability as important reasons for using natural products, but the importance of affordability cannot be overlooked. Almost half of Americans who have increased their natural product use say this is due to declining prices.
Natural Household Products Market – Growth Opportunity
Usage of natural homecare products among older consumers is low, and this represents a missed opportunity. Older consumers tend to have more sensitive skin and respiratory problems, issues that non-natural products can aggravate. With this in mind, health messaging will help to convert older, mainstream-only consumers.Â
For market leaders, eco-focused sub-brands of mainstream products will help entice mainstream consumers, who are concerned about the efficacy of stand-alone eco brands.
Purchase our full report for a comprehensive analysis of the US Natural Household Consumer, featuring consumer insights, sales trends, and market opportunities. Readers of this report may also be interested in Mintel’s US Cleaning the House Market Report 2023.
More About this Report
Household care products covered in this report include Fabric and laundry care, Dishwashing products, Hard surface care, Aircare, Bathroom cleaners, and Household paper products (toilet tissue, paper towels, facial tissues).
Expert Analysis from an Industry Specialist
This report, written by Jamie Rosenberg, a leading global household and persona care analyst, delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight current trends in the natural household products market and add expert context to the numbers.
Inflation has created a difficult environment for eco-friendly products, but as supply chains scale up, cost parity with mainstream brands is on the horizon.
Jamie Rosenberg
Associate Director, Global Household and Personal Care
Collapse All
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- Key issues covered in this Report
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Executive Summary
- Graph 1: Mintel’s natural household consumer segments, 2023
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Key Consumer Insights
- Graph 2: belief that mainstream brands are becoming more sustainable, by natural consumer segment, 2023
- Graph 3: attitudes toward the “green premium” by income, 2023
- Graph 4: consumers who believe the government should ban more harmful cleaning products/ingredients, by natural consumer segments, 2023
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The market
- Market context
- Market drivers
- Graph 5: consumers who say that they’re financially better off compared to one year ago, by income and parental status, 2023
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Competitive Strategies and Market Opportunities
- Graph 6: multi-outlet sales, total surface cleaners and select brands of natural surface cleaners, rolling 52 weeks, 2023
- Graph 7: use of natural vs mainstream surface cleaners, by year, 2019-23
- Graph 8: multi-outlet sales, total laundry/fabric care products and select brands of natural laundry/fabric care products, rolling 52 weeks 2022 and 2023
- Graph 9: purchase of natural laundry detergent and surface cleaners, by age and income, 2023
- Graph 10: consumers who have switched to lower-cost retailers and who are buying more private label products, 2023
- Graph 11: percent of private label surface cleaning launches with sustainable product claims, 2018-23
- Graph 12: top purchase drivers for household surface cleaners, 2023
- Graph 13: multi-surface, glass and bathroom cleaning tablets as a percent of all launches, 2018-23
- Graph 14: laundry detergent sheets and tablets, as a % of all automatic detergent launches, 2018-23
- Graph 15: carbon-neutral homecare products, 2014-23
- Graph 16: importance of climate/carbon neutral status and eco certifications, by natural consumer cluster, 2023
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cONSUMER iNSIGHTS
- Consumer fast facts
- Product usage
- Graph 17: Mintel’s natural consumer segments, 2022 vs 2023
- Graph 18: any natural purchase, by homecare segment, 2019-23
- Graph 19: selected categories, natural brand purchase by age and income, 2023
- Change in usage of natural products
- Graph 20: consumers who are using natural homecare products more often, by age, 2023
- Graph 21: change in natural homecare product use, by natural product segment, 2023
- Graph 22: consumers who have increased their use of natural homecare products, by natural product segment and year, 2022 vs 2023
- Graph 23: reasons for using natural homecare products more often, 2023
- Graph 24: reasons for using more natural homecare products in the past year, by natural consumer cluster, 2023
- Purchase locations
- Graph 25: use of online-only retailer for natural vs mainstream homecare products, 2019-23
- Graph 26: preferred shopping channel for natural vs mainstream products, 2023
- Prioritized product and ingredient claims
- Graph 27: most important eco-friendly product claims, by natural consumer segment, 2023
- Homecare goals
- Graph 28: top homecare goals, 2023
- Graph 29: sustainability-focused homecare goals, by age, 2023
- Graph 30: homecare goals by natural consumer segment, 2023
- Attitudes and behaviors
- Graph 31: attitudes and behaviors related to eco-friendly household care products, 2023
- Graph 32: mainstream brands are becoming more sustainable, 2023
- Graph 33: belief that eco-friendly shouldn’t cost more, and that the government should ban more harmful products/ingredients, 2023
- Graph 34: belief that lawns require too much water, by region, 2023
- Graph 35: consumers who have switched products to reduce plastic waste, and those who believe plant-based cleaners help grow the agricultural economy, 2023
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Appendix
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