The Influence of Ecolabel: Insights from the Indonesian Bioplastics Packaging Industry Stakeholders

Despite the potential environmental benefits of bioplastics, consumers remain confused regarding this innovative packaging material. One possible solution to mitigate these concerns is to introduce ecolabels to communicate this bioplastics material. This study aims to investigate the influence of ecolabel signals and other factors on the adoption and proper disposal of bioplastics packaging among consumers in Indonesia, as seen from the perspective of stakeholders in the bioplastics industry. Signaling theory is utilized as a theoretical lens to build a conceptual model to observe this phenomenon. A total of 17 case studies were collected from stakeholders in various sectors, including production, consumption, waste management, and academia. The findings reveal that while ecolabels can play a role in shaping consumer behavior towards bioplastic packaging, they cannot be the sole determining factor. Other factors such as packaging price, pro-environmental attitude, habitual practice, and access to appropriate waste management facilities also significantly influence consumer adoption and proper disposal of bioplastics. The study contributes as one of the earliest research efforts in this area. Furthermore, the study addresses gaps in bioplastics consumer communication research by highlighting the effect of ecolabels.