Chemical and materials giant BASF announced plans to begin offering net zero and low-carbon products, along with tools to track products’ carbon footprint. The company stated that it aims to be among the first to provide large volumes of as many products as possible with reduced carbon footprints, enabling its customers to reach their own emissions reduction goals.

The company announced the new initiatives as part of an update for investors and financial analysts on its progress towards achieving its climate commitments. BASF announced a series of climate goals last year, including targets to achieve net zero Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2050, cut emissions 25% by 2030, and plans to invest up to €1 billion by 2025 to reach its goals. 

The company expects that demand for the products to exceed supply, and that their market value will compensate for the higher production costs.

BASF stated that it is able to offer net zero and low carbon products by using green power, low-carbon steam, bio-based feedstocks, and other processes. The company aims to provide large volumes of as many such products as possible to reflect the increased interest consumers have in alternatives to conventional consumer products and taking personal contributions towards reducing emissions.

Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE, said:

“BASF is making significant progress on its path to achieving its emission reduction targets. And we are ready for the next step – achieving sustainable growth through products with reduced carbon footprints.” 

BASF’s products form the building blocks of the products of thousands of companies globally. Providing low carbon options can help companies reduce their Scope 3 emissions by lowering the impact of supply chain materials, which account for a significant proportion of most companies’ climate impact. The company will offer net zero and low carbon products by using green power, low-carbon steam, bio-based feedstocks, and other processes. Based on the strong demand for emissions reduction solutions, BASF anticipates that the market value for the low-carbon products will more than compensate for the higher production costs.

In order to provide customers with transparency into the sustainability profile of its products, BASF has developed a solution to calculate the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) for approximately 45,000 products. While the solution currently uses industrial averages and databases as the basis to include upstream Scope 3 emissions, the company is working with suppliers to improve the data for the raw materials to improve data quality. 

Brudermüller added:

“Across BASF, we are working intensively to implement a large number of projects to further reduce our CO2 emissions significantly and achieve our ambitious climate targets. By cooperating with suppliers of raw materials we are also taking steps to reduce our product-related emissions. In this way, we are driving forward our transformation and supporting customers in their efforts to reduce emissions in their product portfolios.”