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Consumers and Sustainability: Over-the-Counter Medications and Supplements
September 1, 2009
This report forms part of a series jointly published by The Hartman Group and
Packaged Facts on Consumers and Sustainability. This four-part series covers in
separate reports the markets for foods and beverages, personal care products,
household cleaners, and OTC medications and supplements.
Sustainability means different things to different people. Asked to identify what the term
means to them, consumers most frequently respond “the ability to last over time” (76%)
and “the ability to support oneself.” Sustainability is also strongly associated with
environmental concerns, whereby consumers are being challenged to develop and
express an “eco-consciousness” in their daily habits and purchases. Thus, nearly half of
consumers associate sustainability with conserving natural resources and with
recycling.
But using “eco-conscious” or “green” as synonymous with sustainability unduly limits the
term. “Green” falls short as a description for the variety of social, economic and
environmental issues that real-world individuals believe are important to sustaining
themselves, their communities, and society at large. Adoption of sustainable products
mirrors the health and wellness progression that The Hartman Group has previously
reported, in which consumers first consider the impacts of things in the body, followed
by on the body, and finally around the body.
As consumers become more educated about the environmental, social, and economic
implications of their shopping habits, their health and wellness motivations dovetail with
societal concerns, such that four zones of sustainability become relevant to purchasing
choices:
• The Personal Benefit Zone
• The Environmental Zone
• The Social Zone
• The Economic Zone

2. Increased media coverage regarding tainted medications due to human error and
globalized production has generated rising consumer awareness about the lifecycle and
potential impacts of over-the-counter (OTC) medications and supplements. Our
research finds that consumers consider social and environmental zones to be salient to
their evaluation and purchase of sustainable versions of OTC medications and
supplements. Although OTC meds and supplements are most common in pill form,
consumers consider many of the same sustainability issues and personal concerns to
be relevant for mass-produced topical ointments.
Read an excerpt from this report below.
Series Methodology
This report series was jointly produced by The Hartman Group and Packaged Facts,
and is based on The Hartman Group’s 2009 multi-category study, Sustainability: The
Rise of Consumer Responsibility. In addition, Packaged Facts provides an update of
consumer attitudes and spending based on a proprietary online poll conducted in
February 2009 and on Experian Simmons surveys fielded from November 2008 to June
2009.
The Hartman Group Quantitative and Qualitative Methods
This report draws primarily on an online survey of 1,856 U.S. adults conducted in
September 2008 by The Hartman Group to understand consumer attitudes and
behaviors related to sustainability. The sample was drawn from a panel of adult U.S.
consumers with Internet access, and was designed to provide good representation of
the U.S. population according to geographic area, age, gender, race and income. The
Hartman Group also conducted qualitative research on sustainability in three markets
(Seattle, Dallas, and Columbus) during August 2008, using consumer ethnography with
fifty consumers as the cornerstone of qualitative research. Ethnographic interviews
included one-on-one conversations at an individual’s home or at a specific retail setting,
as well as group interviews also at consumers’ homes. These engagements garnered
more than 100 hours of in-depth, revelatory consumer discussion.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Methodology
A Joint Publication of The Hartman Group and Packaged Facts
The Hartman Group Quantitative and Qualitative Methods
About The Hartman Group, Inc
About Packaged Facts

3. Chapter 2: Sustainability & the American Consumer
Establishing a Definition of Sustainability
Figure 2-1: What “Sustainability” Means to Consumers
Sustainability Concerns and Purchasing Decisions
Figure 2-2: Frequency of Purchase Decisions Based on Sustainability Concerns
A Consumer-based Model of Responsibility
Figure 2-3: The Four Zones of Sustainability
Experiential Triggers
Figure 2-4: Triggers for Awareness
Informational Triggers
Figure 2-5: Top Sources of Information on Sustainability
The World of Sustainability: Core to Periphery
Figure 2-6: The World of Sustainability
Motivations and Barriers to Purchase
Convenience
Price
Expert Opinion
Experience
Knowledge
Table 2-1: Motivations and Barriers for Sustainable Purchases
Chapter 3: OTC Medicines & Supplements and the Sustainability Consumer
The OTC Market and the Zones of Sustainability
Personal Benefit Zone of Sustainability
Environmental Zone of Sustainability
Safety and Waste Disposal
Consumer and Employee Safety
Humane Treatment of Animals
Motivations and Pathway(s) for Adoption

4. Attributes of Sustainable OTC Medications and Supplements
Natural and Safe Are the Foremost Attributes of Sustainable OTC Meds and
Supplements
Hierarchy of Specific Attributes
Relevant OTC Medication and Supplement Certification(s)
Federal Drug Administration
Cruelty Free
Organic
OTC Medication and Supplement Packaging
Table 3-1: Packaging Do’s and Don’ts for Sustainable OTC Meds and
Supplements
Purchase Criteria
Table 3-2: Purchase Criteria for Sustainable OTC Meds and Supplements
Quantitative Findings on Sustainable OTC Meds & Supplements
Table 3-3: General OTC Health Care Products Category and Corresponding
Sustainable Versions
Figure 3-1: Purchases of OTC Health Care Products
Figure 3-2: Current Market Reach of Sustainable OTC Health Care Products
Figure 3-3: Current Market Reach and Immediate Growth Opportunity of
Sustainable OTC Health Care Products
Figure 3-4: Willingness to Pay 20% More for Sustainable Version of OTC Health
Care Products
Chapter 4: Summary and Key Insights
Issues and Concerns Surrounding OTC Meds and Supplements
Tenets for Package Communications
Chapter 5: Market Update
Responses to Economic Downturn
Table 5-1: Recent Trends in Sustainability Psychographics: Opinions
Table 5-2: Recent Trends in Sustainability Psychographics: Behaviors
Sustainable Products Move Into Mainstream

5. Table 5-3: Percent of Adults Agreeing With Selected Psychographic Statements
About the Environment, 2009 (U.S. adults)
Table 5-4: Percent of OTC Medicine and Supplement Products Marketed With
Natural/Organic or Negative Content Claims, 2005 vs. 2009(P)
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