Food industry to create common standard for product footprinting

The Global Sustainable Transition Alliance (GSTA) convened by WRAP and Wageningen University & Research (WUR) is an international alliance of businesses, NGOs, consultants, and product footprinting tool providers launched in March 2026.

GSTA is now calling on all food and beverage businesses worldwide to support it in creating a single, scientifically robust rulebook for calculating product level environmental footprints for the food and beverage sector.

The alliance now wants to engage with more businesses to expand its reach and ensure alignment across its founding members, including Ahold Delhaize, the companies of Schwarz Group, Mars, Incorporated, Mondra, Mondra Coalition, Global Changer, Inoqo, European Sustainable Food Coalition, Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT), Systain Coalition (coalition members are also Rewe Group and Edeka), HowGood and Foodsteps.

Initially focusing on GHG emissions, GSTA will align and conform with major frameworks such as the GHG Protocol, SBTi, PACT, ISO and PEF – adding a high level of specificity and detail, to enable genuinely comparable product footprints, regardless of who is calculating them.

The development of a single footprinting global standard will save the food and beverage sector time, money and deliver consistent data reporting. Its development is supported by international NGOs including Consumers International and also the Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT), which is an initiative hosted by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD).

Sofie Schop, executive director, EU and global partnerships director at WRAP, said: ‘It has been hugely exciting to partner with Wageningen University & Research to establish this alliance for the food and beverage sector. By joining GSTA and our leading founding members, your business will be part of the first global industry wide alliance to develop a single global footprinting standard. We want this standard to benefit businesses of all sizes and capabilities, providing consistency and efficiency for the industry across the globe. Together, we want to create a shared foundation for comparable data to create faster, more informed decisions that drive measurable emissions reductions across the food and beverage industry.’

Koen Boone, coordinator sustainable value chains at WUR, said: ‘Companies need consistent data from their worldwide suppliers to calculate reliable numbers of the impact of their full supply chain (scope 3). Currently suppliers use many different methods and databases which leads to inconsistent totals for the full supply chain. GSTA is going to address this.’

Naama Avni-Kadosh, director, Partnership for Carbon Transparency (PACT) at WBCSD, said: ‘PACT is proud to be a founding member of GSTA. Global supply chains inherently cross industry boundaries, so credible carbon data has to as well. Sector initiatives like GSTA add the specificity that food and beverage companies need, while PACT provides the common data infrastructure that keeps those efforts interoperable. Harmonisation across initiatives isn't a nice to have. It is what lets a footprint calculated once be trusted and reused everywhere, from farm to retail shelf.’

Grant V Sprick, vice president climate and environment at Ahold Delhaize, said: 'One of the most important things companies can do is use their influence across the value chain to drive positive change. Better farming practices, improved livestock management, and more efficient processing are just a few examples of where collaboration make a significant positive difference. Equally important is aligning on how impact is estimated and quantified. A common standard for product footprinting helps ensure consistency and keeps efforts focused on the areas where action can deliver the greatest impact. We are excited to help shape a solution that can deliver value for businesses, suppliers and consumers alike.’

Michael Löscher, climate strategy lead, Schwarz Corporate Affairs, said: 

‘Turning climate targets into impact requires clear, measurable progress. Together with our partners at GSTA, we are establishing harmonised standards for transparent product emissions.’

WRAP and WUR are calling on businesses around the world to join GSTA and be part of the progression of this groundbreaking new alliance for the food and beverage industry.