The CO2 footprint – known in English as the carbon footprint – is receiving increasing attention as a result of new regulatory requirements. With the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, the EU requires companies to disclose their emissions more transparently – a step that transforms the carbon footprint from a purely environmental indicator into a market-relevant metric. At the same time, international developments are driving the topic forward: while Europe is taking the regulatory lead, new standards are being developed in international standardization bodies to harmonize the handling of CO2 data.
What exactly is it about? At its core, the carbon footprint describes the greenhouse gas emissions associated with a product throughout its entire life cycle – from raw material extraction and manufacturing to use and end-of-life disposal. The methodological basis is the life cycle assessment, standardized through ISO 14040 and ISO 14067. This enables a comprehensive evaluation that extends beyond individual production steps. Nevertheless, the comparability of results remains limited. Different assumptions regarding energy mixes, transportation routes, or recycling processes often mean that carbon footprint values can only be compared to a limited extent.
This is where standardization comes into play by refining and harmonizing existing standards. So-called Product Category Rules define uniform calculation methods for product groups, while product-specific rules take into account the technical characteristics of individual products. The system is complemented by Environmental Product Declarations, which present the data in a transparent manner. Only the interaction of these instruments creates the basis for reliable comparisons – a prerequisite that is becoming increasingly important for both regulatory purposes and market competition. “Comparability of the CO2 footprint is essential for fair competition and the reliable enforcement of applicable legislation,” emphasizes Tim Brückmann, Coordinator for Environment and Sustainability at the DKE.
Current attention is focused on new international standardization projects, particularly within IEC committees, which aim to enable a machine-readable structure for data. The goal is automated data exchange along global supply chains, reducing the considerable effort required for data collection while simultaneously improving data quality. A clear trend is emerging: the carbon footprint is evolving into a central management tool for companies – provided that standardization creates the necessary foundation for comparability and global interoperability.
