Patriotic Aussies favour homegrown groceries—at least for now

Moreover, 17% of consumers go as far as to mindfully seek out Australian Made/Grown badges for all their groceries. 

The logo, nearly a third of shoppers believe, helps instil trust in a product or brand, while a quarter say it builds the authenticity of a product. For 28%, the device assures them that their groceries will be safe, Mintel found. 

Recent changes to the Australian Made/Grown logo, which has been redesigned to give a better understanding a product’s provenance, appear to have had a positive effect on consumers. 

Six out of 10 now agree that a new percentage bar tells them clearly the proportion of ingredients in the product that are either local or imported.

What is striking, however, is how post-Millennials don’t seem to have bought into the homegrown food rush. 

Just 19% of consumers aged 18-24 said they favoured locally made or grown food, compared to the 40%, who were more influenced by convenience and the 34% who just go with their favourite brands. 

“Older generations are more likely to purchase locally made or grown products or services than their younger counterparts—consumers who are generally more attuned to the digital world, more aware and open-minded, and perhaps have higher levels of distrust for official bodies​,” said Shelley McMillan, trend and innovation consultant at Mintel.

Companies that pursue progressive policies or campaigns will be more likely to win the trust of Australia’s younger population—particularly when it comes to fighting for equality, the survey found.

A whopping 71% of 18-34-year-olds said that gender equality was important to them, while one in three women stated that their gender had not been accurately represented in advertising.

Jane Barnett, Mintel’s South Asia-Pacific head of insights, said Australian consumers are known to be big advocates of gender issues, and brands should be seen to be doing more to champion equality and diversity in society.

“With the emergence of a younger, more idealistic generation of consumers, brands would do well if they were more brave and progressive with their approach when driving up brand initiatives​,” she said.

Nevertheless, it is also important for companies that associate themselves with do-good initiatives to ensure they have “enough ground, credibility and consumer understanding to do so​,” Barnett added.