Enabling Carbon Data for the Supply Chain Carbon Footprint

Addressing supply chain carbon footprint and the need for carbon data

As global efforts to shift to a low carbon economy gather pace, the demand for high-quality carbon emissions data is surging across countries and industries. 

Notable developments include:

• the introduction of mandatory carbon reporting regulations for smaller companies 
• the wave of global brands that now require suppliers to report and share data on their carbon emissions
• the introduction of investor frameworks for understanding the carbon impact of financial portfolios

Here are a few notable examples:

1. The U.K. Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) implemented in 2019 now requires companies of more than £36 million in annual revenue or with more than 250 employees to report their carbon footprint in their annual report. This legislation is expected to affect almost 12,000 companies.
2. Tesco, a global retailer, has set carbon reduction targets of 7% by 2020 and 35% by 2030, based on 2015 levels. To help meet its absolute reduction goal, Tesco is actively engaging their suppliers to identify opportunities for action and efficiency improvements.
3. The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) is encouraging investors to understand the supply chain carbon impacts of their portfolios
4. The Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTI) is driving corporate sustainability teams to include supply chain emissions within their targets if they (or other value chain emissions) contribute more that 40% of their total emissions.

As shown above, carbon transparency and responsibility now runs along an organizations entire supply chain rather than just its operational boundary. From investors to brands to citizens, there is an unprecedented demand for good carbon emissions data from all stakeholders -- smaller companies and their supply chains included.

This increased demand for good data on supply chain carbon emissions is challenged by the reality that many smaller companies in the supply chain don’t know what carbon data is, how to collect it and how to share it. This points to an urgent need for a turnkey solution to help suppliers understand the importance of carbon data disclosure in a way that aligns with and then grows their current capabilities.

UL’s Turbo Carbon™: Helping suppliers respond to the data demand in a simple, fast and affordable way

At UL, we help suppliers understand and satisfy the demand for carbon data by deploying solutions that activate, educate and enable them report on their carbon emissions in a globally consistent fashion. This solution is delivered through UL’s Turbo Carbon™, a simple, fast and affordable carbon reporting tool designed to align with many suppliers’ limited resources for driving the carbon reporting process.

An example of this solution in action can be seen with GPA Global, a company that specializes in luxury packaging. GPA Global recently launched an initiative to measure the carbon footprint at 10 of their key manufacturing sites and provide recommendations on how each sites footprint can be reduced. To support their initiative, they’ve equipped each manufacturing site with UL’s Turbo Carbon software, providing each team with the knowledge, processes and tools needed for transparent carbon reporting.

To understand more about UL’s services for carbon management, please download our solution overview or contact one of UL’s carbon management experts at [email protected] to find out more.