Key Concepts in Product Carbon Footprint (PCF)
A Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) calculates the total greenhouse gas emissions associated with a product throughout its entire life cycle. This includes everything from the extraction and processing of raw materials, production, distribution, and storage, to the way the product is used and eventually disposed of at the end of its life.
Key Concepts
Business Goals: When conducting a PCF measurement, you need to define why you're doing it. Common reasons include benchmarking a product’s emissions against competitors, calculating data to provide to a customer, labelling the product with its carbon footprint, meeting reporting requirements, or identifying ways to reduce emissions.
Defining the Product: Also known as the unit of analysis, it is important to define the product being studied as it directly influences the subsequent steps and results of the inventory.
Process Map: A process map of the product identifies the material and energy inputs and outputs for each life stage of the product. A process map should cover:
The flow of the studied product through its life cycle, including any co-products.
Any material and energy inputs and outputs for each life cycle stage.
The attributable processes of each life cycle stage.
Any attributable processes excluded from the inventory.
Activities to Include, or “Attributable Processes”: These are processes or activities directly involved in the production, distribution, and disposal of the product, such as grinding, cooking, and packaging soybeans into soy milk, or manufacturing cartons and any additional packaging materials.
Activities to Exclude, or “Non-Attributable Processes”: These are processes or activities that may occur but don't directly contribute to production. Some examples include the administrative offices of the company or marketing and advertising.