Trust and transparency, in various forms, are important goals for consumer goods companies as they move into 2022, according to an annual survey by Deloitte.
The “Deloitte 2022 Consumer Products Outlook” study of 100 senior executives, in food and other consumer-goods companies, showed that nine in ten say “the industry must work harder to retain trust.” The leading reasons why consumer products companies lose trust include: “brands are not open and transparent” (named by 90% of respondents), “brands don’t meet consumer environmental, social and governance expectations” (chosen by 84%), “brands engage in ‘greenwashing,’” or phony environmental claims (82%).
Transparency was seen as a key element in building consumer trust. “Two-thirds of executives surveyed said that building trust was their company’s highest priority, and even more said it was their company’s most valuable asset,” the report says.
