SUSTAINABILITY
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q: What are Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions?
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Scope 1 covers direct GHG emissions from sources owned or controlled by the organization, such as on-site fuel combustion.
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Scope 2 includes indirect emissions from the generation of purchased energy (e.g., electricity, heat or steam) that the organization uses.
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Scope 3 encompasses all other indirect emissions in the value chain, such as raw material production, transportation, product use, and disposal.
Q: What is a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)?
A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a standardized, scientific method used to evaluate the environmental impacts of a product throughout its entire life cycle—from raw material extraction through processing, and transportation to the customer. It involves four key phases: goal and scope definition, life cycle inventory analysis (LCI), life cycle impact assessment (LCIA), and interpretation, all of which are documented and critically reviewed.
Q: What does “cradle-to-gate” mean in an LCA context?
“Cradle-to-gate” refers to an LCA model that assesses environmental impacts from the extraction of raw materials (“cradle”) up to the point a finished product leaves the manufacturing facility (“gate”). This scope excludes the use and disposal phases, focusing on upstream impacts such as raw material sourcing, production energy, and packaging.
Q: What scope did our cradle-to-gate assessment cover?
Our assessment measured emissions from raw material extraction through processing and packaging at both Melrose, MN, and St. Johns, MI facilities— quantified per tonne of finished spray-dried whey permeate
Q: Which ISO standards govern our spray-dried whey permeate LCA?
-ISO 14040 specifies principles and a framework for conducting LCAs, including defining goal and scope, inventory, impact assessment, and interpretation phases
-ISO 14044 sets requirements and guidelines to ensure completeness, consistency, and transparency in LCA studies
-ISO 14067 defines principles and requirements for quantifying and reporting a product’s carbon footprint (CFP), ensuring consistency with ISO 14040/14044. ISO 14067 is the globally recognized standard for product-level carbon footprinting. It ensures that results are comparable, transparent, and credible, helping brands stand out in sustainability.
Q: What is the IPCC GWP100 methodology used in our assessment?
The IPCC GWP100 method converts various greenhouse gases into a common metric—kilograms of CO₂ equivalent—based on their 100-year global warming potentials, enabling consistent comparison of different emissions over a century timescale
Q: Why did Proliant Dairy engage an independent third party (MyCarbon) for sustainability initiatives, such as LCA?
Independent verification by a recognized consultancy like MyCarbon ensures accuracy, transparency, and credibility by auditing all data, assumptions, and calculations against rigorous international standards. Third-party assurance reassures customers that the reported carbon footprint truly reflects real-world impacts without internal bias.
Q: How can customers use our carbon footprint data?
Customers can integrate these verified metrics into corporate sustainability reports, science-based target frameworks (SBTi), supply chain emissions tracking, and procurement decisions to achieve transparency and compliance with evolving regulatory requirements.
Q: What sets Proliant Dairy’s sustainability reporting apart?
By following ISO 14040/14044/14067, using IPCC GWP100, and securing independent verification, we provide fully vetted, globally comparable carbon metrics—a level of rigor and openness that positions us as industry leaders in sustainability reporting