Understanding Greenhouse Gas Accounting
What Are Scope 1, 2 & 3 Emissions in Packaging?
Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 are categories used to organize greenhouse gas emissions based on where the emissions occur and a company's relationship to the activity that creates them.
Scope 2 covers indirect emissions associated with purchased energy such as electricity, steam, heating or cooling.
Scope 3 covers other indirect emissions across the company's value chain, including upstream and downstream activities.
For manufacturers and brands, packaging-related emissions often appear in Scope 3 because bottles, jars, closures and other packaging components are typically purchased from suppliers rather than manufactured entirely within the reporting company's own operations.
The Fundamental Concept
Why Are Greenhouse Gas Emissions Divided Into Scopes?
The three scopes help organizations identify where greenhouse gas emissions occur across their operations and value chain.
The categories separate emissions generated directly by the company from emissions associated with purchased energy and other upstream or downstream activities.
This helps companies build greenhouse gas inventories, understand where emissions are concentrated and identify areas where reductions may be possible.
A Brand Buying Plastic Bottles
Imagine a personal-care manufacturer purchases HDPE bottles from an outside packaging supplier.
The emissions from producing those purchased bottles would generally be part of the manufacturer's value-chain emissions rather than direct emissions from the manufacturer's own facilities.
The Three Categories
What Is the Difference Between Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3?
Scope 1: Direct Emissions
Scope 1 includes direct greenhouse gas emissions from sources that an organization owns or controls.
Examples may include fuel burned in company-owned boilers, furnaces, vehicles or certain manufacturing processes.
Scope 2: Purchased Energy
Scope 2 includes indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with purchased electricity, steam, heat or cooling consumed by the reporting company.
The emissions physically occur at the energy producer, but they are associated with the electricity or energy the company purchases.
Scope 3: Value Chain
Scope 3 includes other indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with upstream and downstream activities across the company's value chain.
Examples can include purchased materials, transportation, business travel, product use and end-of-life treatment.
How This Applies to Packaging
Where Can Packaging Emissions Show Up?
Packaging touches multiple parts of the value chain, so emissions related to packaging can appear in different scopes depending on the reporting company.
| Packaging Activity | Possible Scope | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Company-Owned Packaging Manufacturing | Scope 1 | Fuel burned directly in equipment or onsite combustion associated with company-controlled packaging production. |
| Electricity Used at Company Facility | Scope 2 | Purchased electricity used to operate filling lines, molding equipment, warehouses or other owned facilities. |
| Purchased Bottles, Jars & Closures | Often Scope 3 | Emissions associated with materials and packaging components purchased from outside suppliers. |
| Inbound Freight | Often Scope 3 | Transportation of packaging materials or components from suppliers to a manufacturer or distribution facility. |
| Outbound Distribution | Often Scope 3 | Transportation associated with finished products and packaging moving through the downstream supply chain. |
| Packaging End of Life | Often Scope 3 | Emissions associated with recycling, landfill, incineration or other modeled end-of-life pathways. |
Why Packaging Teams Hear So Much About Scope 3
Why Can Packaging Be Important to Scope 3 Emissions?
Many manufacturers and brands purchase packaging rather than producing every bottle, jar, closure or dispensing component inside their own facilities.
That means emissions associated with resin production, packaging manufacturing, supplier operations and transportation can become part of the customer's value-chain emissions.
As companies work toward corporate climate goals, packaging suppliers may increasingly be asked to provide information that helps customers understand and manage these upstream emissions.
A Practical Supply-Chain Example
How Can the Same Packaging Emission Be Reported Differently?
Consider a bottle manufacturer that produces packaging for a brand.
Fuel burned directly by the bottle manufacturer's equipment may be part of that manufacturer's Scope 1 emissions. Electricity purchased to operate the plant may be part of its Scope 2 emissions.
For the brand purchasing the finished bottles, the emissions associated with those bottles may instead contribute to the brand's upstream Scope 3 inventory.
The emission itself has not changed. What changes is the reporting relationship between the emission source and the organization preparing the greenhouse gas inventory.
Upstream & Downstream Activities
Which Scope 3 Activities Can Relate to Packaging?
The exact categories depend on the reporting organization and its value chain, but packaging can intersect with several common types of upstream and downstream activities.
Purchased Goods & Services
Purchased bottles, jars, closures, labels, cartons, resin and other packaging materials may contribute to upstream emissions.
Transportation & Distribution
Moving packaging components and finished products through the supply chain can contribute to value-chain emissions.
Capital Equipment
In some inventories, machinery and equipment purchased for packaging, manufacturing or warehousing may be considered separately.
Waste Generated in Operations
Packaging scrap, rejected components and other operational waste may have associated treatment or disposal emissions.
Use of Sold Products
For some products, packaging design may influence product use, dispensing, storage or other downstream activity.
End-of-Life Treatment
The eventual recycling, disposal or other treatment of sold packaging may be included in downstream value-chain calculations.
Related Climate Concepts
Scope 1, 2 & 3 vs. Carbon Footprint: What's the Difference?
A carbon footprint estimates greenhouse gas emissions associated with a defined product, organization or activity. Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 are categories used to organize emissions within an organizational greenhouse gas inventory.
| Concept | What It Describes | Packaging Example |
|---|---|---|
| Carbon Footprint | The greenhouse gas emissions associated with a defined product, activity, organization or system boundary. | The estimated CO₂e associated with producing and distributing a specific bottle. |
| Scope 1 | Direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by the reporting company. | Fuel burned in company-owned manufacturing or warehouse equipment. |
| Scope 2 | Indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity, steam, heat or cooling. | Purchased electricity used in a company-operated filling or molding facility. |
| Scope 3 | Other indirect upstream and downstream value-chain emissions. | Purchased packaging, supplier manufacturing, freight or packaging end-of-life. |
Packaging Decision Making
How Can Packaging Decisions Influence Value-Chain Emissions?
Lightweighting
Reducing material use while maintaining package performance may reduce material-related emissions and sometimes transportation impacts.
Recycled Content
Appropriate PCR options may influence material-related emissions, although actual results depend on resin, processing and study methodology.
Supplier Selection
Manufacturing technology, energy sources and supplier operations can influence the emissions associated with purchased packaging.
Transportation Efficiency
Package geometry, sourcing distance, freight mode and pallet efficiency may affect transportation-related emissions.
Package Performance
Sustainability changes should preserve product protection because product loss or damage can create additional environmental impacts.
End-of-Life Design
Material and component choices may influence potential recycling pathways and modeled end-of-life emissions.
Important Climate-Claims Context
Does Reducing Scope 3 Automatically Mean a Package Is Sustainable?
No. Greenhouse gas emissions are one important environmental consideration, but they do not represent every aspect of packaging sustainability.
A packaging change designed to reduce emissions should still be evaluated for product protection, compatibility, recyclability, material use, regulatory requirements, sourcing, cost and supply-chain performance.
Companies should avoid turning a single emissions metric into a broader environmental claim that the available data does not support.
Common Misconceptions
What Should Packaging Teams Avoid Assuming?
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Sustainability Simplified™ in Under a Minute
Scope 1, 2 & 3 Explained
Suggested Narration
“Scope 1 emissions come directly from sources a company owns or controls. Scope 2 covers the emissions associated with purchased electricity and other energy. Scope 3 includes other indirect emissions across the value chain. For many manufacturers and brands, purchased packaging can contribute to Scope 3 because the bottles, jars and closures are made by outside suppliers.”
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Sustainability Simplified™ — At a Glance
Three Things to Remember About Scope 1, 2 & 3
Frequently Asked Questions
Scope 1, 2 & 3 Emissions FAQs
What are Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions?
What is Scope 1 in packaging?
What is Scope 2 in packaging?
What is Scope 3 in packaging?
Is purchased packaging a Scope 3 emission?
Are freight emissions Scope 3?
Is packaging end-of-life included in Scope 3?
What is the difference between carbon footprint and Scope 1, 2 and 3?
Can packaging choices reduce Scope 3 emissions?
Turn Climate Goals Into Packaging Decisions
Packaging Can Be One Piece of a Larger Scope 3 Strategy.
Empire EMCO helps manufacturers evaluate rigid packaging options based on material, package weight, recycled content, supplier capabilities, sourcing, transportation, product compatibility, performance, availability, cost and sustainability goals.