How are growers, retailers and consumers thinking about sustainability, prioritizing it in their businesses and lives, and defining what it means to them and the future of the planet’s health and food supply? Each year we look forward to digging into the results of Sustainability Insights, The Packer’s one-of-a-kind survey that explores sustainability from three perspectives.
While sustainability priorities differ somewhat among the three groups, there are overlapping themes. Given these differences, one key to the fresh produce industry’s continued progress on the sustainability front may be growers and retailers gaining a better understanding of what’s driving consumer demand.
The 2025 Sustainability Insights survey, designed by Prime46 Research and Consulting and Farm Journal’s Intelligence Division and fielded in June and July, finds sustainable packaging and reducing food waste rose to the top of both retailer and consumer sentiment. But for growers, sustainability is more focused on long-term economic viability with an eye to sustaining the farm for future generations.
Majority of Growers Stress Importance of Sustainability
The Sustainability Insights 2025 grower survey gathered insights from 74 growers, packers and shippers — the majority of whom identified as decision-making owners — on their perceptions and opinions related to sustainability in fresh produce production, packaging, food waste and labeling practices. The survey, fielded June and July 2025, included growers across the continental U.S., with 1,324 average acres farmed per respondent and over two-thirds of farmers surveyed over the age of 45.
Despite weather shocks and market uncertainty, 74% of growers surveyed say sustainability is very or extremely important to their business strategy. When asked to drill down on what sustainability means to them, 32% of growers surveyed ranked economic and long-term viability as the highest consideration, compared with just 9% of consumers.
Field-grown fresh produce growers eclipsed the number of indoor or greenhouse-grown respondents; the most frequently reported crops grown by survey participants include conventional vegetables (30%), berries (30%), tomatoes (25%), leafy greens (24%), specialty produce (13%) and organic vegetables (12%).
Retailers Prioritize Sustainability
Retail participation in Sustainability Insights 2025 included 83 survey respondents comprising U.S. retail executives, managers or employees with at least some involvement in the retail operation. The survey was conducted in June and July.
Retailers reported sustainability as a high priority within their strategy and financial decisions, with 98% of respondents saying sustainability is either important, very important or extremely important.
When asked what are the top three reasons they implement sustainable practices, retailers most often pointed to reducing food waste (54%), meeting customer priorities (43%), being “the responsible thing to do” (42%) and improving human health (28%).
Packaging continues to be one of the most visible and measurable ways for retailers to advance sustainability.
Sustainable packaging ranks highest in importance in ability to impact sustainability within the supply chain with recyclable (69%), biodegradable (65%) and compostable (61%) packaging scoring highest as extremely or very important. Biological inputs and reducing carbon emissions also ranked high for at least half of the respondents.
Consumers Crave Sustainability
Fielded in June 2025, nearly 500 U.S. consumers — who share or do most of their household grocery shopping — completed the Sustainability Insights 2025 survey.
While sustainability resonates across all produce shopper demographics, Sustainability Insights 2025 finds that sustainable packaging may be the most powerful tool grower-packer-shippers and retailers have in engaging sustainability-minded consumers.
Though consumers place great importance on sustainable packaging, surveyed growers underestimated consumer willingness to pay for it. Thirty-five percent of consumers say they will pay upward of 11% more for sustainable packaging, but growers think only 13% of consumers will pay that much more.
While sustainability means many things to consumers, food waste was the top reported concern associated with a sustainable food supply, followed by a desire to improve human health, and climate change, shows Sustainability Insights 2025.
When asked how important a brand’s commitment to reducing food waste is to their fresh produce purchase, consumers placed the highest importance on
this effort, with 71% of consumers saying reducing food waste was extremely or very important.
In this report, we hope you find the insights, information and inspiration you need to drive your sustainability initiatives and achieve success in the year ahead.
Download the free report here.
