Make your emissions reporting easier with spend-based emission factors
Getting started with your carbon footprint doesn’t have to be complicated. Manufacturers across New Zealand are already sitting on one of the most powerful tools for understanding their emissions: their financial data. Spend-based emission factors turn dollars spent into practical emissions estimates, providing you with a fast, accessible way to start measuring and managing your impact. They’re especially helpful for scope 3 emissions from your supply chain, which are typically the hardest to track but often make up the biggest part of your footprint. In this article, we explain what spend-based emission factors are, how you can use them in your business, and where to find the most accurate and up-to-date data for New Zealand. What are spend-based emission factors? Spend-based emission factors are a type of emissions data that connect greenhouse gas emissions with how much money you spend on goods and services. They express emissions as kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂-e) per dollar spent (kg CO₂-e/$). They’re calculated using environmentally-extended input-output (EEIO) models. These models look at the total emissions of a sector (like “fabricated metal products” or “office furniture”) and divide this by the total revenue of that sector. The result is an average emissions intensity per dollar. In simple terms, they give you a ballpark figure: if you know how much you spent in a certain category, you can estimate the emissions that came with it. Why use them? Spend-based emission factors are especially helpful when: →You don’t have access to physical data (like litres of fuel or kilograms of steel) →You need an emissions estimate based on financial records →You’re starting your emissions reporting and want to cover as much ground as possible →You want to identify emissions hotspots in your supply chain before doing a deeper dive. They’re widely used for: →Scope 3 […]