Consumers' purchase behavior of Cradle to Cradle Certified® products—The role of trust and supply chain transparency

Consumers' trust in eco-labels is declining due to the growing number of different kinds of eco-labels that can be uncertified and related to greenwashing. This paper argues that providing more transparency regarding green supply chains (GSCs) through eco-labels (such as Cradle to Cradle Certified®) is critical for creating trust and convincing consumers to buy eco-products over conventional ones. Building on previous literature related to sustainable consumption behavior, green purchasing behavior, Cradle to Cradle certification and GSC management, we develop and test a conceptual model to empirically investigate the links between consumers' trust in eco-product labels and GSC perceptions in influencing green purchase behavior (GPB) in the case of eco-friendly fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs). By studying a sample of 276 German consumers and applying structural equation modeling, we find that the trust in eco-product labels and positive perceptions of GSCs are important drivers of GPB. Our research contributes by expanding the knowledge on the factors influencing the acceptance of eco-products, highlighting the importance of supply chain transparency and trust in GSCs among consumers. We discuss theoretical implications for green product innovation and marketing including eco-product labeling based on transparent GSCs.