Podcast Summary: Nudge – "Why Naming a Dish 'Field-Grown' Doubled Sales"
Episode Information
- Title: Why Naming a Dish “Field-Grown” Doubled Sales
- Host: Phil Agnew
- Guest: Toby Park, Director of Climate, Energy, and Sustainability at the Behavioural Insights Team
- Release Date: July 21, 2025
Introduction to Behavioral Insights in Sustainability
[00:00 – 00:26]
Phil Agnew introduces the episode by highlighting a fascinating experiment where renaming a vegetarian breakfast to "field-grown" instead of "meat-free" led to a doubling in customer selection.
Notable Quote:
Toby Park: "Calling a vegetarian breakfast field grown rather than meat free roughly doubled the number of people who said they would choose it from the menu." [00:00]
The Role of Public Behavior in Achieving Net Zero
[02:06 – 03:42]
Toby Park emphasizes that achieving net zero emissions heavily relies on changes in public behavior, accounting for 62% of the necessary emissions cuts. He breaks down this percentage into technological adoption (53%) and lifestyle or habit changes (9%). The remaining 38% pertains to supply-side actions, which still require public support and behavioral considerations.
Notable Quote:
Toby Park: "The lion's share of that, about 53%, comes from technology adoption behaviours. So we need households to adopt heat pumps and move away from fossil fuel boilers, for instance." [02:16]
Harnessing Timely Moments for Behavioral Change
[04:31 – 08:05]
Toby discusses the concept of "timely moments"—specific life events that disrupt existing habits, making individuals more receptive to behavior change. Examples include moving to a new city or ending a milestone birthday. He cites studies showing significant increases in behavior change during such periods.
Notable Quote:
Toby Park: "There will be moments in people's lives when habits are disrupted where they will be more receptive to changing their behavior." [05:01]
The Power of Language Framing in Promoting Sustainability
[11:11 – 14:18]
A significant portion of the episode delves into how subtle changes in language can dramatically influence consumer behavior. Toby shares multiple studies where renaming dishes and altering labels led to increased sales of sustainable options without altering the products themselves.
Notable Quotes:
Toby Park: "Calling a vegetarian breakfast field grown rather than meat free roughly doubled the number of people who said they would choose it from the menu." [11:11]
Phil Agnew: "Renaming meat-free sausage and mash as field-grown sausage and mash made it twice as popular as well." [11:53]
Toby Park: "People are loss averse. We're sensitive to things we will lose out on or miss more than we are positively affected by things we gain." [12:29]
Implementing Smart Labeling for Energy Efficiency
[13:26 – 15:19]
Toby presents an experiment where adding lifetime running costs in pounds to energy efficiency labels increased the selection of more efficient appliances, despite their higher upfront costs. This highlights how presenting long-term benefits can sway consumer choices towards sustainability.
Notable Quote:
Toby Park: "By introducing that additional pound information across all of the appliance types that we tested, the people who saw that label were significantly more likely to choose the more efficient good when presented with that choice." [14:04]
Leveraging Social Norms to Encourage Sustainable Behaviors
[16:50 – 22:37]
The discussion shifts to the influence of social norms on behavior. Toby explains how showcasing the popularity of sustainable choices can create a bandwagon effect, encouraging others to follow suit. Examples include displaying the number of people who have already adopted electric cars or limiting meat consumption.
Notable Quotes:
Toby Park: "Social norms are simply the informal rules, expectations or accepted behaviors of a society or group, and they influence us in a number of different ways." [16:50]
Phil Agnew: "A 2021 study found that simply listing the amount of sales next to a product on an e-commerce website made people 58% more likely to buy." [18:03]
Toby Park: "Solar panels, for instance, are literally contagious. If you live on a street where more houses have solar panels and they're visible, you're more likely to get them yourselves." [19:50]
Conclusion and Bonus Content Announcement
[22:37 – End]
Phil Agnew wraps up the episode by reiterating the effectiveness of non-logical methods like renaming and social proof in driving sustainable behaviors. He also teases a bonus episode available to newsletter subscribers, where Toby shares innovative ideas like a lottery-based recycling incentive.
Notable Quote:
Phil Agnew: "If Toby's examples have taught us anything, it's that the illogical ideas work just as well." [22:37]
Key Takeaways
- Language Matters: Renaming sustainable options with positive language can significantly boost consumer choices.
- Target Timely Moments: Intervening during life changes can enhance the effectiveness of behavioral nudges.
- Social Proof is Powerful: Highlighting the popularity of sustainable behaviors can create a bandwagon effect, encouraging others to follow.
- Smart Labeling Encourages Efficiency: Presenting long-term cost benefits can persuade consumers to choose more energy-efficient appliances.
Further Resources
- Bonus Episode: Toby Park discusses innovative recycling incentives and other behavioral strategies. Available for Nudge newsletter subscribers via the provided link in the show notes.
- Report on Net Zero: Toby Park's comprehensive report on applying behavioral science to achieve net zero emissions is available through the show notes.
This episode of Nudge offers valuable insights into how subtle psychological strategies can drive significant changes in sustainable behaviors, emphasizing that sometimes, the most effective nudges are those that don't rely on logical arguments but rather on understanding human psychology.