Product Carbon Footprint: quantifying the carbon cost of beauty

How is the beauty industry adapting for a sustainable future?

Brands that exemplify ‘conscious beauty’ through innovation and continuous evolution of their products are well-positioned to meet the demands of the conscious consumer.

'Green' and 'clean' products have given way to the more purpose-led brands with values, and actions that are aligned to those values, that resonate and appeal to the personal ideals and principles of shoppers.  

Amid rising consumer climate anxiety, some brands are responding to new customer demands for products that meet the more extreme environmental conditions many are experiencing, like record temperatures, through the use of climate-adaptive products. These products aim to provide solutions to beauty concerns that arise from issues such as poor air quality and soaring temperatures, combatting novel issues brought about by climate change.

In addition to new product categories that are seeking to tackle our changing world, the personal care and beauty industry is using data and information to see how it can play a significant role in the reduction of carbon emissions from current baselines. From the production of raw materials to the manufacturing of ingredients, processing of formulations, and then the packaging, transportation and eventual disposal, the industry's carbon footprint is significant.[2]  

However, before you can reduce a carbon footprint you need to quantify it and identify hotspots and areas where impact needs to be made. This can be difficult, but there are tools and data points that make this more accessible and provide a starting point for tackling the challenge.

What is a product carbon footprint?

Carbon footprinting does not just consider a company’s own activities, but also those of their suppliers and any other contributors to the manufacture or use of their product or service.

This is where transparency within the supply chain, and the identification of ingredients with improved sustainability attributes, can allow brands to showcase genuine dedication to reducing their environmental impact.

65% of UK personal care and beauty shoppers[3] want brands to be more transparent about the environmental impact of their products. But how can they do this?

Product carbon footprints can be a useful piece of the impact puzzle. They are used to identify the ‘carbon cost’ of a product, essentially measuring all of the carbon emissions that arise from all activities associated with the production and use of the product, and everything and everyone leaves a footprint behind. However, once we know the impact of our footprint, we can introduce strategies to reduce those emissions and their resulting impact. This could be through the introduction of restorative or regenerative positive impacts, sometimes called your carbon handprint, to negate the footprint.

How is a product carbon footprint measured?

When it comes to determining a product’s carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions produced and consumed throughout the product lifecycle are measured to assess its carbon impact. This includes everything from the extraction of raw materials at the start of the product life (otherwise known as the cradle portion of the systems boundary) through the manufacturing process of the product to either the point where it leaves the business (gate) or even its eventual disposal after use and end of life (grave).

However, there is no exclusive methodology that is used within either the personal care or chemical industry. The well-respected International Organisation for Standardisation do have a standard (ISO 14067:2018[4]) that provides principles, requirements, and guidelines for the quantification and reporting of the carbon footprint of a product. On top of this, the Greenhouse Gas Protocol offers guidance from their methodology for industry verticals to consider when analysing their emissions.

Together for Sustainability[5] (TfS - a joint initiative and global network of 54 chemical companies which delivers the global standard for environmental, social, and governance performance of chemical supply chains) have also released a ‘Product Carbon Footprint Guideline for the Chemical Industry’[6], which is aligned to both the ISO standards on carbon and also the Greenhouse Gas Protocol[7].

At Croda, we have calculated product carbon footprints for circa. 1,500 of our product codes, offering clarity and support to our customers. Our calculations consider cradle-to-gate emissions; i.e. they include composite Scope 1, 2, and Scope 3 upstream emissions data. For a reminder of how carbon emissions are categorised into scopes and what they are, visit ‘Croda Beauty’s decarbonisation journey’.

The product carbon footprint methodology Croda follows is aligned with this guidance from TfS, meaning that we are using best practice that is specific to the chemical industry when measuring our product carbon footprint.

The limitations of product carbon footprints

Whilst product carbon footprints can be incredibly valuable for assessing the carbon impact of a product portfolio, and can therefore support the implementation of a decarbonisation strategy, there are limitations.

Primarily, a significant amount of time and resources can be required to collect and analyse the data needed to produce a product carbon footprint. Once created, the lack of a single accepted methodology makes it difficult to compare products across different brands.

In addition to this, product carbon footprints address just one aspect of a product’s environmental impact, so although they are a great first step and can help brands to consider less-impactful options when selecting ingredients, they could oversimplify the issue of sustainability. Utilising additional methods and tools that align with, or incorporate, product carbon footprint as part of a wider analysis, can help address this concern.

What are the benefits to brands?

Sustainability is now an expectation from personal care consumers; brands not incorporating environmental impact into their strategy risk falling behind.

Understanding and utilising product carbon footprints can help companies quantify the climate impact of their product portfolio, create actionable and measurable targets that provide substantiation when communicating their decarbonisation initiatives, and drive real progress in their decarbonisation journey.

On top of this, they provide greater insight and transparency into suppliers and the wider supply chain, giving buyers more confidence in their purchasing decisions.

As a customer of Croda Beauty, you can request a Product Carbon Footprint statement from your sales representative. Alternatively, you can submit a request through our online contact form.

Our ongoing commitment

At Croda Beauty, we are always working to improve our transparency for customers and carry out thorough evaluations of our suppliers, helping us to offer in-depth data regarding the environmental impact of our products. With greater insight and data, brands and manufacturers can make better ingredient choices and devise formulations with improved footprints.

As we move forwards in our impact journey, Croda Beauty is committed to the continued evolution of our impact reporting and insights, so that we can implement changes that improve our product carbon footprints, for the sustainability of the industry. We have a commitment to be net zero by 2050, and product carbon footprint data helps us set interim targets and measures, ensuring we are making progress and adjust our plans and programs used to deliver this along the way. Helping us to support our customers on their sustainability and decarbonisation journeys.

References: