This week, AMR Marketing Research released figures detailing consumer awareness of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) ecolabel in Europe. In the Netherlands and Germany, approximately 35% of consumers are aware of the MSC label, which is notably higher than anywhere else. The Swedish are also setting a strong example with 23% of respondents saying they only buy MSC labeled seafood, and are prepared to switch supermarkets to get sustainable fish.

This survey is a testament to the hard work done by MSC in the past few years. While roughly one in four North Americans are aware of the label, this number has increased from less than one in ten only two years ago.

While the vast majority of consumers in developed countries are now aware of concepts like organic and fairtrade, the prevalence of ecolabels is relatively recent. If ecolabel awareness statistics continue to rise at the current rate it won’t be long before ecolabel certification becomes a key pre-requisite for eco-products, and ‘greenness’ becomes just as important as price and quality to a growing base of consumers.