Addressing the gap between consumers’ concern for the environment and the impact of their actual behavior has been a key focus of marketing researchers seeking to better understand sustainable actions in the marketplace. This attitude-to-behavior gap is well-studied with an emphasis on personal characteristics and messaging techniques that help predict or nudge sustainable behaviors such as purchase and disposal. Informed by my managerial experience in a consumer goods manufacturing environment, I believe there are practices related to packaging and labeling that while well-intended, may have unintended negative consequences in terms of their ultimate environmental impact. Essay 1 examines the role of density on a consumer’s decision to trash or recycle product packaging, a timely topic given manufacturing trends that reduce the amount of raw material used to produce packaging. The findings show that consumers are more likely to dispose of low-density recyclable packaging in the trash, rather than appropriately recycle it, due to their perceptions of the material’s usefulness. Essay 2 examines the topic of retailer food waste by evaluating the role of individual differences on consumers’ likelihood to purchase perishable goods approaching expiration. Specifically, I evaluate the likelihood to buy an expiring good as a form of sustainable consumption and find consumers with high green consumption values are more likely to do so. By unpacking why these individuals are more likely to prevent expiring perishables from going unsold, I seek to identify labeling and retail tactics that can reduce food waste across the general population. Together, these essays explore how managerial practices around packaging and labeling contribute to waste generation, identifying opportunities for further research into the role practitioners play in inhibiting sustainable consumer behavior.