With a rapidly growing world population and the need to address the issue of consumption of global resource and its associated environmental impacts and other social and economic issues, the demand for a responsible consumption, production and prevention of waste generation become increasingly crucial. With this broad characterization of Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP), businesses based on circular economy should become the norm. With this goal in mind, an online questionnaire survey was performed on a nationwide scale, to explore consumers’ behaviors and attitudes. It was distributed in all four of Romania’s macro-regions and reached 642 respondents. The purpose of the study has been to better understand consumers’ behavior regarding sustainable consumption and production and examine whether generations play a role in responsible consumer attitudes toward the products. Three generations (X, Y, and Z) have been examined and compared. The results show that what extent those three generation agree with the environment and the benefits of reducing resource consumption, also waste generation, selective collection, recycling and reuse. However, most of them have not adopted and do not intend to adopt consumer patterns based on the circular economy. The findings provide empirical evidence and directions that could help marketers identify their consumer’s characteristics and market segments and develop consumer empowerment strategies on the Romanian market.

The quality of water and its impact on consumers’ health has been studied extensively, along with concerns surrounding the use of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) packaging. This research aimed to analyze consumer behavior regarding water consumption patterns, with a focus on sustainability, packaging preferences, and perceptions of drinking water quality. Two surveys, conducted in 2019 and 2024, used a 23-question structured questionnaire to assess the public willingness to prevent water waste in the context of the circular economy. The surveys addressed consumer identification, drinking water preferences, the awareness of alternative consumption methods, and the openness to sustainable solutions such as water filters. Key quantitative findings showed a 10.4% increase in the amount of bottled water purchased in a single trip and a 12.1% rise in the frequency of weekly purchases, particularly among women and younger consumers. Simultaneously, a 4% increase in the preference for PET packaging over glass raised concerns about environmental sustainability, while the preference for tap water dropped by 5%, correlated with a 4.2% decline in the perceived tap water quality. The brand preference also shifted notably, with Aqua Carpatica rising to 38% and Borsec declining from 37% to 16%, reflecting the influence of purity-focused marketing. The novelty of the approach lay in identifying emerging trends related to sustainability, health, and circular economy principles. A comparative analysis of Romanian citizens’ responses over time highlighted changing perceptions of water use and waste reduction. To support the analysis, 13 statistical indicators were evaluated, a Spearman correlation test was applied to 13 criteria, descriptive statistics were computed, and a t-test was conducted across eight hypotheses.