Filipino Gen Z's Willingness to Pay Premium for Eco-Friendly Packaging on Skin Products: A Case of UPLB Students

Date

5-2025

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Economics

College

College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Adviser/Committee Chair

Jaimie Kim B. Arias

Committee Member

Asa Jose Sajise, Gideon P. Carnaje, Maria Angeles O. Catelo

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Abstract

The beauty industry generates approximately 120 billion packaging units annually, with most discarded after a single use, contributing to significant environmental waste. As sustainability gains global importance, understanding consumer willingness to pay (WTP) for eco-friendly alternatives becomes crucial. This study investigates the WTP premium for eco-friendly skin products among Generation Z (Gen Z) students at the College of Development Communication (CDC), University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB). Gen Z, recognized for its environmental awareness but constrained by limited disposable income, represents a key demographic for sustainable market initiatives.

The study employed the Contingent Valuation Method (CVM) with the Payment Card Method (PCM) to estimate WTP, using a survey distributed among CDC students. A total of 177 valid responses were analyzed, and interval regression analysis was conducted to identify significant predictors of WTP. Results revealed an average WTP premium of PHP 34.53 for eco-friendly skin products. Environmental awareness (EA) emerged as a significant positive predictor of WTP, indicating that students who were more aware of the environmental impact of their choices were more willing to pay a premium. Conversely, environmental concern (EC), health concern (HC), and perceived quality (PQ) were not statistically significant, suggesting that general concern for the environment and one’s health, as well as the perceptions of product quality do not necessarily directly translate to a higher WTP. This highlights a gap between environmental values and purchasing behavior—consistent with existing literature on the attitude-behavior gap in sustainable consumption.

Language

English

LC Subject

Cosmetics industry, Willingness to pay

Location

UPLB College of Economics and Management (CEM)

Call Number

LG 993.5 2025 E2 D45

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Document Type

Thesis

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