Product Carbon Footprint

Benefits of Product Carbon Footprint

Climate change is reshaping the conditions for our industry, and every part of the value chain is affected— from cultivators and producers to suppliers and retailers. As sustainability becomes a prerequisite for business resilience, efficient resource use and long‑term supply security are becoming critical for our shared future. 

As one of the world’s larger buyers of alcoholic beverages, we recognize the responsibility and the opportunity to drive positive change. We believe our work with Product Carbon Footprint can help build trust with consumers and reassure them that we understand their needs and aim to meet their expectations. It can also help identify ways to strengthen sustainability strategies throughout the value chain. Lastly, it can bring operations closer to global and EU climate committments, by identifying concrete ways to reduce emissions.

We invite all actors in the Systembolaget supply chain to join us on this innovative PCF journey. Together we hope to test, learn and refine our methodology, strengthen our collaboration, and carve out a more resilient industry with new opportunities over time.

What data is needed?

The data we ask you to report is often information you already have available; for example, in invoices for purchased goods and services.

Click on the graphic to get a higher resolution in pdf. 

In some cases, you may need to make an allocation—that is, estimate how much of a shared resource, such as total energy use, should be assigned to a specific product.

Learn how to make allocations here.

Connect your supply chain - build PCF together

PCF measures the total greenhouse gas emissions released across a product’s life cycle. The more emissions, the larger the footprint. At Systembolaget, we divide PCF into four modules: Cultivation, Production, Packaging, and Transport.

To calculate the carbon footprint of your product, Systembolaget works with CarbonCloud — a collaborative platform designed for Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) calculations. To get started, we invite our direct suppliers to join the platform and add their products. Direct suppliers can then invite their suppliers, and step by step, the PCF network grows to complete a transparent carbon footprint for each product. This process was designed to be as easy and efficient as possible, but gathering data for PCF can be managed in a way and in the time that best fits your organization. 

Systembolaget requires no capial investment to access the CarbonCloud platform or build a PCF, and we offer different froms of training and support here on the PCF site and through our partner, CarbonCloud.

Read more about how it works here

Why do we use PCF?

To reduce climate impact, we first need to understand it. And to understand it, we must measure it—product by product. That’s why we work with PCF.
It’s the only way to accurately measure Scope 3 emissions, which make up the majority of our climate impact. Organizational data from suppliers isn’t enough—it can’t be linked to individual products. Instead, we need activity-based data from each part of the value chain. This gives us the detail needed to track emissions, enable fair comparisons, and drive real improvements. Read more about how an Organizational Carbon Footprint (OCF) relates to and differs from a PCF.

Climate impact concerns us all

Climate change is already reshaping the conditions for producing and transporting food and drink. Every part of the value chain—growers, producers, retailers, and consumers—is affected and has a role to play. Global frameworks like the Paris Agreement, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and EU regulations all point in the same direction: reducing greenhouse gas emissions and limiting global warming.

Read more about PCF:s connection to legislation

Systembolaget will support those who take action—for example by enabling fair comparisons between products within the same category. Our goal is to create equal, transparent, and proportionate incentives for products with a lower climate footprint.