Original title: Populism and sustainable marketing practices: Insights from consumer-packaged goods manufacturers’ new product launches
M. Heinberg, M. Belkhouja, H.D. Yoon · October 2026
Companies often release new goods in eco-friendly packaging to show concern for the environment. But when anti-climate political movements gain strength, companies pull back on these green choices. Researchers studied what happened globally after the United States announced its exit from the Paris Agreement. They found that consumer goods manufacturers reduced environmentally friendly packaging on new launches. However, local economic freedom and strong cultural norms weakened this drop, helping preserve sustainable packaging.
A runner wears high-visibility gear on public roads to stay safe and signal caution to drivers. If passing motorists start honking aggressively and shouting insults at people dressed brightly, the runner might choose plain, dark clothes the next day just to avoid trouble. In this paper, companies act like that runner: when loud political movements push back against climate initiatives, businesses quietly drop their visible green packaging to dodge backlash. Local community norms determine whether they feel safe enough to keep using it anyway.
When politics turns hostile toward climate policy, companies quietly cut back on green packaging for new store goods. This shows that corporate sustainability is vulnerable to political shifts rather than driven purely by core values. However, local rules and cultural norms can act as a shield, helping businesses maintain eco-friendly practices even amid national political backlash.
The abstract focuses strictly on environmentally friendly packaging in new product launches for consumer-packaged goods, leaving out other sustainability practices and existing product lines. It relies on a single political event—the United States' announced withdrawal from the Paris Agreement—to examine anti-climate populism. It also evaluates only two specific subnational moderators: economic freedom and cultural tightness.
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Populism and sustainable marketing practices: Insights from consumer-packaged goods manufacturers’ new product launches — M. Heinberg, M. Belkhouja, H.D. Yoon — Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science — doi:10.1007/s11747-026-01211-y
Abstract licence: CC BY
Explanation generated by Synthesis from the abstract — it is not the original paper.