International comparison of consumer policies and sustainability

Fundamental changes in the way societies produce and consume are indispensable for achieving global sustainable development. The Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food had commissioned adelphi and the "nexus Institute für Kooperationsmanagement und interdisziplinäre Forschung" to carry out an international comparison of sustainable consumer policies in a number of states.

In collaboration with researchers from the U.S., UK, Sweden and France the rationale, objectives and successes of governments to shape national consumer policies were analysed. The comparison provided insights on innovative policy solutions to combine the requirements of both, consumer policies and sustainability. Moreover, the study showed to what extent these policy solutions could be applied to the German context.