A new wave of startups is putting carbon tracking at the core of their business models. While ESG enthusiasts defend it as a sign of environmental maturity and strategic foresight, critics of this business model are questioning whether these carbon tallies are as meaningful (or accurate) as they claim.<\/p>\n
Sweetgreen, for example. The US-based salad chain decided to measure the environmental impact of each ingredient on its menu\u2014including seemingly harmless Parmesan shavings. Cheese, according to data from climate tech startup Watershed, ranks among the most carbon-intensive items in Sweetgreen\u2019s kitchen. But its emissions vary a lot depending on how suppliers manage cow manure.<\/p>\n
Other startups, such as Allbirds (sustainable footwear) and Rothy\u2019s (recycled shoes and bags), have also begun tracking, disclosing, and attempting to reduce their internal carbon footprints. The goal is clear: transparency and alignment with investors and consumers increasingly demanding measurable climate commitments and ESG practices.<\/p>\n
These efforts are usually paired with sleek digital tools. Raw data\u2014such as how much energy a store uses, where materials are sourced, the emissions tied to logistics\u2014is turned into polished reports, often with dashboards and external verification. Allbirds, for instance, label each sneaker with a \u201ccarbon footprint score,\u201d showing the kilograms of CO2 emitted during production.<\/p>\n
Still, skepticism remains. Carbon emission measurements and tracking is still considered by academics and market specialists as an imprecise science with a lot of room for fraudulent activity or, simply put, greenwashing. One major issue is that the numbers often rely on sector averages, not supplier-specific data.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s actually an incentive to inflate emissions\u2014for example, to later reduce them via carbon offsets\u2014there\u2019s potential for conflict of interest. Lack of standardization is another concern: with no clear regulatory framework, companies are free to choose their own methodologies, making comparisons difficult not to say impossible.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, carbon tracking is gaining investor attention. Watershed, a platform that helps companies track internal emissions, already reached a $1.8 billion valuation after a funding round led by Sequoia Capital and following investments. Former Bank of England governor Mark Carney also joined as an advisor on the company.<\/p>\n
Regulators are catching up. In the US, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed rules that would require public companies to disclose direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions. In Japan, companies will soon have to disclose or explain why they aren\u2019t disclosing climate data regularly. The aim is to standardize emissions reporting and introduce climate accountability into financial markets.<\/p>\n
For startups eager to position themselves as innovative and sustainable, tracking their own emissions is becoming a moral\u2014and commercial\u2014imperative. But without transparency, methodological rigor, and third-party verification, there\u2019s a risk carbon tracking could end up remembered more as a branding trend than a true accounting revolution.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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