Investigation on the drivers of green purchasing towards environmental sustainability in the Malaysian manufacturing sector

Green purchasing is an environmentally-conscious purchasing practice that takes into consideration the reduction or elimination of hazardous purchased items, in addition to the promotion of recycling, reuse, and resource reduction during the purchasing process. Despite the significant role that green purchasing can play in improving environmental performance of firms, little is known about the drivers that motivate firms to adopt green purchasing, especially in Malaysia. This paper examines the effect of four drivers; regulations, customer pressures, social responsibility, and expected business benefits on green purchasing in the Malaysian manufacturing sector. The empirical findings suggest that green purchasing is affected by regulations, customer pressures, and expected business benefits. The results also suggest that, although, Malaysian firms show a high level of social responsibility; it does not constitute a genuine driver for these firms to adopt green purchasing. The results provide insights into why Malaysian firms adopt green purchasing activities. It also provides managers and policy makers with a list of drivers that can be used as directions for setting appropriate policies that encourage firms to adopt green purchasing initiatives.