Reducing greenhouse gas emissions

2011-18

• We set a target in 2013 to reduce our GHG emissions 20% (per case of product sold) by 2020, using 2011 as our baseline. We achieved this target early, reducing our GHG emissions 33% on an intensity basis (per case of product sold) and 25% on an absolute basis, all by 2018. This represents a reduction of 189,000 metric tons of GHG emissions between 2011 and 2018. To view progress made in our previous goal periods, see our environmental sustainability data archive. 

2019 

• We publicly committed to setting SBTs across our value chain with the Science Based Target initiative, or SBTi. 

2020

• The Clorox Company — along with our Burt’s Bees brand — signed on to America Is All In, a statement endorsed by more than 1,000 businesses, government entities, universities and other institutions, to show support for ambitious commitments to tackle the global climate crisis and for the U.S. to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement. As a signatory, we underscore our commitment to drive economic growth through job creation and sustainable investments, and to do so in a manner that addresses systemic inequalities and ensures everyone benefits from the transition to climate resiliency. We also signed onto the Energy Buyer Federal Clean Energy policy statement along with more than 30 other corporations, calling for a 100% clean energy power sector. 

2021

• The SBTi approved our 2030 targets for scopes 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions. The ambitious targets covering emissions from company operations (scopes 1 and 2) are consistent with reductions required to keep warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. We also declared our net-zero ambition and signed onto the Business Ambition for 1.5°C, committing to setting net-zero targets by 2050 that are aligned with SBTi criteria.  
• We achieved our scope 1 and 2 SBT of 50%, delivering a 62% reduction versus our 2020 base year emissions. This was driven by the achievement of our complementary IGNITE goal of 100% renewable electricity in the U.S. and Canada in 2021, four years ahead of our original plan, a full year of renewable electricity at our Colombia location and a partial year of renewable electricity at our Chile location.  

2022

• We created an internal roadmap and published a Climate Action Plan for our net-zero goal and near-term SBTs. Given that only 7% of our baseline global emissions are directly attributed to our own operations (scope 1 and 2), we recognize action is needed to address the majority of emissions in scope 3 that are generated through our supply chain, distribution, consumer use, and material and design choices of our products and packaging. In our Climate Action Plan, we’ve detailed our approach to addressing these challenges, including influencing and collaborating with our stakeholders and leveraging new technologies and innovation as they become available. 
• We made progress on our scope 3 SBT, achieving a 15% reduction in scope 3 Category 1 — purchased goods and services and Category 11 — use of sold products (direct) against our 2020 baseline, primarily driven by contraction of the business as it normalized from the high demand for our products during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also maintained our achievement of our scopes 1 and 2 SBT, delivering a 65% reduction in emissions versus our 2020 base year.  
• We invited nearly 50 priority suppliers to participate in the Supplier Leadership on Climate Transition collaborative, which helps build capacity for measuring emissions and setting SBTs. We also achieved a 78% response rate from priority suppliers for the 2022 CDP Supply Chain questionnaire, which improves our visibility into our suppliers’ carbon footprint and reduction targets. This helps us assess suppliers’ progress to reduce GHG emissions that are included in our scope 3 footprint.  

Ongoing

• Recognizing the importance of transparently disclosing our climate efforts to stakeholders, we continue to apply the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures framework to communicate our approach to climate governance, strategy and risk management, which can be found in our integrated annual report. 
• We are also committed to reducing emissions of particulate matter, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), sulfur oxide (SOx) and nitrous oxide (NOx), and are diligent about reducing, reusing and recycling fluorinated gases, or F-gases. Wherever required by federal, state or local regulations, we ensure our facilities are compliant with our air permits that limit the use of VOCs, SOx and NOx, and to public reporting of that data to relevant government agencies. 

GHG emissions overview (2022)

Our combined absolute scope 1, 2 (MBM)** and 3 GHG emissions decreased 19% in 2022 versus 2020, our baseline year for our 2030 SBTs and net–zero goal, primarily driven by contraction of the business as it normalized from the COVID-19 pandemic, along with sourcing renewable electricity for our U.S., Canada, Colombia and Chile (partial year) locations. On an intensity basis, scope 1, 2 (MBM) and 3 GHG emissions have decreased 6% per case of product sold between 2020 and 2022.   

**Scope 2 emissions reported are calculated using the market-based method, or MBM. Beginning in 2021, scope 2 MBM emissions utilized various environmental attributes from renewable energy credits, or RECs, associated with virtual power purchase agreements, RECs purchased on the open market and International RECs purchased through an energy service provider. These market-based instruments were specific to facilities in the U.S., Canada, Colombia and Chile in 2022. Prior to 2021, the company did not use market-based instruments. 

Energy efficiency

We have focused on energy efficiency to reduce GHG emissions associated with energy used in our manufacturing, distribution and R&D facilities as well as in our offices. These efforts have reduced our energy costs and consumption. For more details, visit our Energy webpage for details.

Distribution efficiency

We have increased the environmental efficiency of our finished product distribution by moving from truck to more efficient rail. On average, approximately 20% of Clorox finished goods distribution miles are by rail.

Through the 2020 goal period (as well as in our current IGNITE period) Clorox has been a Transport Partner of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s SmartWay program, using qualified SmartWay carriers for approximately 80% of our truck freight miles. These carriers enable Clorox to measure, benchmark, and track efforts to increase efficiency and fuel economy.

This program expanded our environmental partnership with the EPA, which includes our membership in the agency’s WasteWise and Safer Choice programs. We’ve also conducted extensive network reconfiguration and optimization of shipments between our plants, co-packers, distribution centers and customers.

Workplace initiatives

We’re committed to reducing our workplace energy use and commensurate GHG emissions. In recent years, we’ve reduced business travel. During our prior goal period (2011-18), our business travel mileage (vehicle miles plus air-passenger miles) dropped by more than 15%, with a 30% reduction in GHG emissions due to both travel reduction and lower emissions factors. In 2020, primarily due to COVID-19 pandemic travel limitations, our GHG emissions associated with business travel dropped by over 80% relative to a more recent 2018 baseline. While business travel has picked up in the past year, emissions associated with business travel in 2022 were less than half of those from 2019, the full calendar year prior to the pandemic.  

Despite the pandemic, we needed to continue critical environmental compliance work across our manufacturing operations, so we revamped our compliance audit process using existing tools and technology to allow for work to proceed remotely. Relying on cloud storage technology as the repository for compliance documentation that was accessible by remote audit teams, we used smart glasses and smart phones to observe local site conditions in areas of particular environmental interest to execute internal and third-party compliance audits with no travel. This transformative digital approach is expected to continue selectively post-pandemic, enabling the team to keep reducing costs and emissions associated with travel to our plants. 

Renewable energy sources: Kingsford

Kingsford retort furnaces convert renewable wood scrap into char. Much of the heat generated from this process is, in turn, used to dry waste wood raw material as well as finished charcoal briquets, and to power steam boilers that are used for other Kingsford manufacturing operations, thereby reducing dependence on electricity powered by fossil fuels that these plants need to pull from the grid.

Renewable energy credits and carbon offsets

As part of its 2025 vision, our Burt’s Bees business joined The Climate Collaborative. The business continued to be CarbonNeutral-certified through fiscal year 2023, building on a commitment to offset carbon emissions, including emissions from fuels used in its facilities, transportation of raw materials and finished products, and employee travel; beginning in 2021 emissions from electricity used in its facilities are being addressed by renewable electricity. GHG emissions from Burt’s Bees operations are now less than 1.5% of Clorox’s total annual scopes 1 and 2 GHG emissions.