At the recent ElitePlus Conference in Mumbai, Mark Carl-Henrik Conrad, associate partner at McKinsey & Company, shared compelling insights on global consumer attitudes toward sustainable packaging. Speaking at the conference, Conrad revealed findings from McKinsey’s latest iteration of their Global Sustainability Packaging Consumer Sentiment Survey, based on over 11,000 consumer responses across 11 countries.

“I’m based at the intersection of our packaging and our sustainability practices,” Conrad began, “and I lead our circularity work. Today, I want to share what we learned about how consumers perceive sustainability in packaging.” The survey tracks shifts in consumer sentiment over three key periods: early COVID in 2020, peak inflation in 2023, and today’s “terror uncertainty” of 2025.

One of the most surprising revelations, Conrad noted, was how the perceived importance of environmental impact changed over time. “Environmental impact became much less important to consumers from 2020 to 2025,” he explained, “but overall, it’s still higher than five years ago.” While initial pandemic-era fears saw a surge in environmental consciousness, recent economic and geopolitical pressures appear to have tempered some of that urgency. Yet, consumers still value sustainability more than before the pandemic.

A clear and consistent insight emerged: circularity matters most. Whether it’s recyclability, recycled content, or reusability, consumers around the world increasingly define sustainable packaging by these attributes. “This is the type of sustainability consumers care about in packaging,” Conrad emphasized.

However, the survey also tackled the delicate subject of willingness to pay for sustainable packaging solutions. “If you launch something to everyone at once, almost certainly they won’t pay more,” Conrad said. But crucially, the data revealed pockets of consumers in every market who are both aware and willing to spend extra on sustainable products. In the US, for example, the most enthusiastic buyers were “wealthy women in the northeast,” particularly interested in cosmetics and household goods.

When diving deeper into what influences purchasing decisions, Conrad highlighted that quality and price still dominate, especially in markets like India and China where brand reputation ranks highly. “If you are way behind on price or quality, pushing just the environmental message won’t cut it,” he noted. “Sustainability has to be a complement, not a replacement.”

The survey also revealed surprising insights into how consumers perceive different packaging substrates. “Plastic films are seen as the least sustainable packaging option across virtually every country,” Conrad said. He pointed out the exception of Germany, where aluminum foil ranks last instead. He attributes Sweden and Germany’s more favorable perception of PET bottles to well-publicized deposit return schemes. “When people know that PET bottles are collected and recycled, they consider them more sustainable,” he explained.

An intriguing cultural nuance emerged from the data: In India, sustainability is closely linked with brand perception. “The connection between sustainable packaging and a brand being seen as environmentally friendly is strongest in India,” Conrad shared. Given that “brand is the second most important purchase driver after price,” he argued that India could be a prime market for advancing sustainable packaging.

When asked about responsibility for sustainability, most consumers pointed fingers at brand owners and packaging producers. Yet, Conrad lamented a disconnect: “The average number of packaging producers a consumer could name was zero.” This, he suggested, is an opportunity for brands to position themselves clearly as sustainability leaders in consumers’ eyes.

Concluding his presentation with a touch of humility, Conrad remarked, “I was able to sneak in these insights thanks to the great work from our presentation team.” But the bigger message was clear: Sustainability in packaging is far from a niche concern. It is an evolving market force driven by consumer awareness, targeted pockets of high willingness to pay, and growing expectations for transparency and circularity.