Whether a campfire gets left unattended or lightning strikes dry brush during a drought, people caught in the resulting wildfires are changing their shopping habits — not just by putting on masks but also by shopping for greener products, at least for a while.
Findings from a recent study by researchers in the Naveen Jindal School of Management at The University of Texas at Dallas show that the shift toward sustainable products is real but tends to fade once the smoke clears.
The paper — “Consumer Response to Climate Change: Wildfire Smoke and Sustainable Product Choice” — was published in the Dec. 2025 issue of the Journal of Marketing Research. It forms part of the doctoral dissertation of Jindal School PhD student Taewook Lim, and is co-authored by Tongil (TI) Kim, an associate professor in the Jindal School’s Marketing Area and Lim’s faculty advisor, and Dr. Suh Yeon Kim from Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business.
Lim said wildfire smoke offered the team a unique opportunity because it affects consumers without shutting down supply chains or store operations like floods or hurricanes do.
“That means we could clearly observe how consumers’ demand changed, not whether they could access products, he said. “It’s also easy to measure smoke levels thanks to the EPA’s air quality data, which helped us track exposure across communities.”
The paper suggests that both altruistic environmental and self-centered health concerns drive sustainable purchases. Lim said both types of concern played a role in the study, as they were about equally strong in the study’s data.
“We can’t yet say which one lasts longer or predicts behavior better over time—more research is needed to understand that,” he said. “But what’s clear is that both motivations can push people to make more sustainable choices during climate events.”
The study’s surveys show that both the behavioral and attitudinal changes fade within a year after a wildfire. Kim said those changes suggest that when a crisis hits, people care more and buy more sustainably — but the effect doesn’t last.
“Turning that short-term awareness into long-term habits will likely require help from companies and policymakers,” he said. “Timely reminders, education, easy access to sustainable products and well-designed incentives could make a big difference — especially if applied during or soon after a climate change event.”
The paper mentions that sustainable brands “stand to gain” from these events. Kim emphasized that companies should interpret that insight responsibly rather than as an opportunity to take advantage of consumers, given that the triggering events are climate disasters.
“When people are reminded of health and environmental risks, they naturally look for trustworthy, safer options,” he said. “Brands that have already invested in credible sustainability — clean ingredients, third-party certifications, transparent communication — are the ones consumers turn to. The message for companies isn’t to benefit from disaster, but to be ready when consumers care most. That means staying consistent and authentic in sustainability efforts.”
The study focuses on cleaning products certified under the EPA’s Safer Choice program. Lim expects similar patterns in other consumer categories such as food and apparel.
“This probably holds true, at least in product categories where both environmental and health concerns overlap, but we’d need more evidence to say for sure,” he said.
The paper notes that future research should explore other climate events like flooding or heat waves and their effects on the sustainable product choices consumers make.
“Wildfires are special because the smoke is visible — you can literally see it — and wildfires don’t usually disrupt supply,” he said. “Floods or hurricanes, on the other hand, cause physical damage and shortages, which could show how supply problems mix with demand changes. Heat waves are different again. They’re invisible, so if we still see behavior change, that would tell us visual cues aren’t necessary for consumers to react.”
Lim noted that unscented and refill products see the biggest jumps in demand when wildfires hit, which fits with stronger health and environmental awareness. Also notable is that stores already selling a lot of sustainable products show smaller increases after wildfires — perhaps because those shoppers were already buying sustainably.
“Together, these patterns help brands predict which products and stores are likely to see the biggest shifts during climate-related events,” Lim said.
