The PACT methodology and data file: what your buyer means
PACT, the Partnership for Carbon Transparency, is run by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). It publishes two things suppliers meet: a methodology for calculating product footprints in a consistent way, and a data model so a footprint can travel from your systems into your customer's.
6 min read · Updated
Why PACT exists
Two suppliers can follow ISO 14067 and still make different choices: different boundaries, allocation methods or treatment of recycling. When a brand adds up footprints from hundreds of suppliers, those differences matter. PACT narrows the choices so footprints line up.
What the methodology fixes
- Cradle to gate: the shared footprint stops at your factory gate.
- Latest IPCC warming factors (AR6, 100 years) for converting gases into CO₂e.
- Allocation rules for factories that make more than one product.
- The cut-off method for recycled content: no credit for recycling at end of life.
- Data quality ratings from 1 (best) to 5 for technology, geography and time, and the primary data share.
- Separate reporting of biogenic emissions and removals, land-use change and aircraft emissions.
What the data file is
The PACT data file is a structured file (JSON) with fixed field names, so a buyer's software can read it without anyone retyping figures. It carries the footprint excluding and including biogenic uptake, fossil emissions, the unit, the reference period, the standards followed, the data quality and the primary data share.
A PDF report and a PACT file do different jobs. The PDF is for people: it explains the method, sources and limitations. The PACT file is for systems. Buyers increasingly ask for both, which is why our buyer pack contains both; see an example on any product page.
Three things suppliers get wrong
- Sending a cradle-to-grave figure as the PACT value. The file holds the cradle-to-gate number.
- Leaving out the company and product identifiers the file requires, so the buyer's system rejects it.
- Writing zero for a value that could not be worked out (for example land-use change that is mixed into a factor). Leaving it out with an explanation is more honest than a hard zero.
Getting a PACT-format footprint
Our tool exports a PACT v3 data file with every footprint and lists any required field that is missing before you send it. Start with a free estimate from a product link, or work through the full footprint form with your own data.
Questions
Is PACT a standard like ISO 14067?
It is a methodology and a data model that build on ISO 14067 and the GHG Protocol, so footprints can be compared and exchanged.
Is a PACT footprint cradle to gate or cradle to grave?
Cradle to gate. Stages after the factory gate can be reported separately but are not part of the PACT figure.
Do I need special software to send a PACT file?
No. The file is plain JSON; you can email it. Larger buyers may also receive it through a connected system.