Identifying Material Hotspots within Gaia Herbs Value Chain to help Identify Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Abstract

Due to growing pressures from governments, consumers, and investors, companies are developing corporate climate strategy to increase the resilience across their value chains. Businesses are beginning to quantify their environmental impacts through greenhouse gas (GHG) accounting. The Greenhouse Gas Protocol offers guidance to companies looking to account for Scope 1, 2, and 3 GHG emissions. Scope 3 emissions present a complex challenge, because they encompass all indirect emissions from both upstream and downstream activities in a company's value chain. Our client, Gaia Herbs, a leading herbal supplement company, is interested in analyzing their value chain and accounting for scope 3 emissions that are most material to their operations. This project lays out methodologies to account for scope 3 emissions from categories Purchased Goods and Services, Upstream Transportation, and Waste. Our scope 3 assessment focused on supplier engagement, qualitative information, and quantitative data.