Some of our findings support the assumption made on the basis
of the NIE logic that private eco-branding can be viewed as a retaildriven
institutional arrangement that incentivizes retailers'
engagement with the development of markets for sustainability
certified food by turning it into a profitable endeavor.6 Our findings
reveal that private eco-branding creates the business case for
greening product markets by lowering the sourcing costs for ecolabelled
products, while at the same time allowing retailers to
pursue either price or non-price differentiation strategy from the
rest of the sustainability certified assortment (cf. Lehner and
Halliday, 2014). The differentiation mechanism allows retailers to
protect their investments into green market development from
being easily lost to competitors with access to the same certification
schemes. There is also some indication that private ecobranding
might facilitate consumer demand by enhancing consumer
trust in eco-labelled products by applying multiple certifi-
cation and requiring higher frequency of supplier audits.
However, due to a number of challenges associated with the
development of private eco-brands, it is unlikely that they will
substitute third-party eco-labels. These challenges are associated
with time, expertise and asset-specific investments required to
define the sustainability criteria and conduct supplier audits. Given
the wide product ranges, the complex nature of sustainability issues
and the sheer number of suppliers in the retail procurement
network, it becomes practically impossible for retailers to perform