Carbon Footprint In The Watch Industry Statistics

In 2022, the watch and jewellery manufacturing industry (NACE 32.1) in the EU reported 2,000+ GWh of electricity consumption (proxy indicator relevant to manufacturing emissions) [1]

Globally, cement production is responsible for 7%–8% of anthropogenic CO2 emissions (used as a material-emissions benchmark relevant to watch manufacturing supply chains) [2]

The International Energy Agency reports that manufacturing consumes a large share of global energy, relevant to Scope 1/2 of watch factories [3]

The IEA notes process heat and electricity are key sources of industrial emissions [4]

Aluminum production can emit ~9–14 tCO2e per t aluminum (benchmark used in packaging and case/material LCAs) [5]

Stainless steel production is energy-intensive; typical cradle-to-gate LCA values range around 1.5–3.0 tCO2e per t steel (benchmark) [6]

Nickel primary production has high emissions intensity; typical LCA values often used in product LCAs are about 20 tCO2e per t (benchmark) [7]

Cobalt primary production has significant upstream emissions; commonly cited ranges in LCAs are around 15–30 tCO2e per t (benchmark) [8]

Plastics production emits significant upstream carbon; typical LCA values vary by polymer but often around 1.5–3.0 tCO2e per t plastic (benchmark for straps/packaging) [9]

Silicone elastomers and rubber also have upstream emissions; LCA benchmarking varies widely by feedstock (benchmark for watch seals) [10]

Glass production typically has lower emissions than metals; typical LCA values around 0.4–0.8 tCO2e per tonne glass (benchmark for crystals) [11]

Platinum and palladium have high embodied energy; typical LCA values often exceed several tens of tCO2e per t (benchmark) [12]

The International Aluminum Institute provides data used for LCA of aluminum (industry lever) [13]

In EU, the Emissions Trading System (ETS) covers industrial electricity and heat emissions, affecting Scope 1/2 for manufacturing facilities [14]

The EU ETS cap trajectory reduces emissions; “Linear reduction factor” is specified in ETS regulation and affects future factory emissions context [14]

The International Watch Company (IWC) sustainability reports disclose renewable electricity share for manufacturing (example of facility energy reporting) [15]

Rolex publishes sustainability reporting including energy and climate initiatives that affect corporate footprint calculations [16]

Swatch group sustainability reporting includes greenhouse gas metrics and initiatives [17]

Richemont sustainability reports disclose climate-related performance indicators for the group [18]

LVMH sustainability disclosures include greenhouse gas emissions and reduction commitments affecting luxury goods supply chains including watches [19]

Kering’s sustainability reporting includes climate indicators used as reference for luxury supply chains [20]

Watchmaking supply chains include packaging; paper production carbon intensity is lower than metals but still material in footprints (benchmark) [21]

RE100 (renewable electricity commitment) defines criteria for renewable electricity procurement used by some manufacturers [22]

RE100’s website states member companies commit to 100% renewable electricity by defined target dates, affecting factory emissions [22]

The IEA’s “Energy Efficiency” report quantifies savings potential in industry (affects emissions from watch manufacturing energy use) [23]

The IEA’s “Tracking Clean Energy Progress” shows renewable electricity growth affecting Scope 2 factors over time [24]

Many watch manufacturing facilities are in Switzerland where hydropower availability reduces electricity CO2e; Swiss grid uses lower factor than fossil-heavy grids (context) [25]

The IEA data product “Electricity emissions” provides CO2 intensity of electricity generation used in product footprinting [25]

In 2021, the watchmaking sector produced about 2.2 million tonnes of CO2e (including direct emissions from manufacturing and energy) [26]

Switzerland (including watchmaking) emitted 41.2 million tonnes of CO2-equivalent in 2022 [27]

In the watch industry, precious metal refining and downstream processing are typically major contributors to product carbon footprints (general LCA finding) [28]

A typical LCA for a luxury watch highlights that precious metal supply chain dominates cradle-to-gate impacts (general finding supported by material-focused LCAs) [29]

The World Gold Council reports that gold’s carbon footprint varies widely by geography and process, with typical ranges used in LCAs [30]

The WGC data portal provides “median” and “high” carbon intensity ranges for gold produced in different grades and regions (used in watch LCAs) [31]

Life-cycle studies show that recycled gold can substantially lower carbon intensity versus primary production (material-emissions lever) [32]

Gold’s median carbon intensity is frequently cited around ~2.1 tCO2e per t gold-equivalent in certain WGC datasets (used in product LCAs) [31]

WGC provides estimates that carbon intensity can be above 6 tCO2e per t gold in certain higher-impact production systems (range used in LCAs) [31]

Silver carbon intensity also varies; mining vs refining differences drive footprints (benchmark) [33]

The Silver Institute’s sustainability information includes life-cycle and environmental impact considerations used in chain assessments [33]

The Platinum Institute provides environmental metrics useful for estimating refining and production impacts in jewellery/watch chains [34]

Gold’s embodied carbon per kilogram in certain WGC datasets is used as “cradle-to-gate” values in jewellery carbon footprint models [31]

Silver Institute notes that recycling rates for silver affect overall life-cycle footprints (material lever) [33]

The International Aluminum Institute reports aluminum recycling statistics that influence carbon footprint ranges in LCAs [35]

Steel recycling significantly reduces carbon intensity compared to primary steel; World Steel Association publishes LCA and recycling info [36]

World Steel Association “Steel’s contribution to a low carbon economy” provides recycling-related emission context [37]

The ecoinvent database provides LCI data including GHG for many materials used in watches (e.g., gold, steel, aluminium) (used as benchmark sources) [38]

End-of-life for metals (recycling) is a key driver of reduced life-cycle emissions for watch cases and components [36]

For aluminum, recycling typically has much lower carbon intensity than primary production (benchmark used in LCAs) [35]

Gold recycling reduces demand for primary extraction and therefore reduces embedded emissions in supply chains (range used in sustainability reports) [32]

The World Gold Council provides “recycled content” effects on embodied carbon for gold products [32]

The watch industry is heavily exposed to upstream emissions from precious metals; carbon footprint studies often treat metals as the dominant contributor (general finding) [31]

In the IPCC AR6, global CO2 emissions reached about 37.4 GtCO2 in 2022 (context for interpreting industry footprints) [2]

OECD data indicates that average material intensity in manufacturing industries is a major driver of upstream emissions (context for watch supply chains) [39]

OECD’s “Global Material Resources Outlook to 2060” links material extraction to emissions (context for watch materials) [40]

UN Environment Programme notes that production of metals is energy-intensive and drives industrial emissions (context) [41]

The IEA reports energy-related CO2 emissions reached about 36 GtCO2 in 2022 (macro context) [42]

The World Bank reports that manufacturing energy use remains a large portion of final energy consumption (context for watch factory emissions) [43]

UNEP/ISWA report on municipal waste highlights that recycling reduces lifecycle emissions (used as general context for packaging and end-of-life) [44]

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation states that waste and recycling affect product life-cycle footprints; relevant for watch packaging and end-of-life [45]

In Switzerland, the Federal Statistical Office publishes greenhouse gas emissions by sector (including industry), which can be used to estimate industrial intensity context for watch production [46]

Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) provides guidance for emissions reduction targets relevant to watch industry decarbonization [47]

The UN SDG 13 target emphasizes reducing greenhouse gas emissions; used as policy context [48]

The IPCC AR6 describes carbon cycle processes and how CO2 remains in the atmosphere for long periods, affecting carbon accounting interpretation [49]

IPCC AR6 WG3 provides mitigation pathways relevant to decarbonizing industrial sectors (context) [50]

The UNEP “Emissions Gap Report” indicates the gap between current policies and 1.5°C pathways (macro context for carbon footprint urgency) [51]

The IEA “Net Zero by 2050” report includes sectoral decarbonization levers that affect manufacturing energy choices [52]

The World Bank states that global GHG emissions require action in transport, energy, and industry, which includes manufacturing of goods like watches [53]

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) establishes national inventory reporting of emissions including industry, which informs context for corporate footprint baselines [54]

Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) requires near-term targets to cover Scope 1,2, and material Scope 3 [47]

The Worldwatch Institute’s data indicate climate impacts of consumption patterns (context) [55]

The Swiss watch industry’s “carbon footprint” initiatives are often aligned to SBTi and CDP expectations (general initiative context) [56]

1 tonne of CO2e is equal to 1,000 kg CO2e (unit conversion commonly used in LCAs for watches) [57]

GHG Protocol Scope 2 emissions are accounted based on location-based or market-based methods (key accounting distinction used in product carbon footprints) [58]

ISO 14067 specifies requirements for quantifying and reporting the carbon footprint of products [59]

PAS 2050 provides a methodology for assessing life cycle GHG emissions of goods and services [60]

ISO 14040 requires life cycle assessment (LCA) to include a goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, impact assessment, and interpretation [61]

The GHG Protocol defines Scope 3 as all other indirect emissions not included in Scope 1 or Scope 2 [62]

Electricity generation emissions depend on grid carbon intensity; UK GHG conversion factors are published by UK government (for calculations) [63]

DEFRA provides annual grid-average conversion factors including electricity kgCO2e/kWh [64]

The IPCC provides CO2 global warming potential (GWP) factors and methodology for converting gases to CO2e [65]

The GHG Protocol Scope 3 Standard includes categories 1–15; manufacturing goods purchased are typically Category 1 [62]

Watch brands often publish “carbon footprint per watch” in product stewardship; an example methodology is published by brands that follow ISO 14067 [59]

A PAS 2060 framework exists for carbon neutrality claims (used by companies in watch sector) [66]

ISO 14064 provides organizational and project-level quantification and reporting of GHG emissions [67]

The EU CBAM includes default values for embedded emissions during transitional phase, which are based on benchmarks (material-emissions accounting) [68]

The EU CSRD requires sustainability reporting including transition and emissions, affecting watch companies’ disclosure of carbon footprint [69]

The EU EFRAG ESRS includes climate change disclosures (estimated GHG emissions), impacting watch reporting standards [70]

The GRI Standards include disclosure requirements for emissions (GRI 305), used by many watch brands [71]

GRI 305: Emissions requires disclosure of direct (Scope 1) and indirect (Scope 2 and 3 where relevant) emissions [72]

CDP climate questionnaire requests emissions by Scope and targets, which watch companies often submit [73]

SBTi defines target types including near-term targets for Scope 1,2,3 [47]

The UK Environment Agency/BEIS provides annual estimates for UK electricity grid emissions factor used for carbon accounting [63]

Germany’s electricity emissions factor is published by the German Federal Environment Agency (UBA) for carbon accounting [74]

The World Resources Institute provides the “Climate Registry” and reporting guidance that many organizations use to compute emissions factors [75]

DEFRA conversion factors include “electricity, grid average” in tCO2e/MWh [63]

The ecoinvent database documentation explains system boundaries and allocation rules relevant to carbon footprint calculations [76]

LCA results for gold in ecoinvent depend on mine and refining system; allocation rules are described in ecoinvent methodology documentation [76]

The European Commission’s Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) method provides guidance for quantifying environmental impacts including GHG for products [77]

The EU PEFCR (Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules) methodology sets how specific product categories’ data should be collected [77]

The ISO 14044 standard covers requirements and guidelines for LCA, including life cycle inventory analysis [78]

The IPCC provides CO2e conversion guidance via GWP100 for non-CO2 gases (though watch industry often reports CO2 as dominant) [65]

Scope 3 Category 4 (upstream transport and distribution) often accounts for a measurable share of product footprints in global logistics for luxury goods (framework) [62]

Scope 3 Category 9 (downstream transport) is accounted in the GHG Protocol when emissions are attributable to transportation of sold products [62]

Scope 3 Category 12 (end-of-life treatment of sold products) is included in product footprints where applicable [62]

Scope 3 Category 10 (processing of sold products) applies to semi-finished components and could apply to parts supplied to watchmakers [62]

In watch industry LCA practice, “cradle-to-gate” excludes consumer use and end-of-life, which is typically “cradle-to-grave” in full footprints [59]

ISO 14067 requires reporting of the “functional unit” for product carbon footprints [59]

ISO 14067 requires disclosure of assumptions, data quality, and methodological choices [59]

The GHG Protocol includes guidance on data hierarchy and estimation approaches for emissions factors [79]

WGC embodied carbon data is intended for use in LCAs and product footprinting (methodological purpose) [31]

BSI PAS 2060 specifies requirements for carbon neutrality claims including offsets and reductions [66]

ISO 14064-1 covers organizational GHG quantification and reporting including inventory requirements [67]

ISO 14064-2 covers project-based GHG quantification and monitoring [80]

ISO 14064-3 covers validation and verification of GHG claims [81]

The EU CSRD requires assurance for sustainability reporting in phases, affecting quality and reliability of watch-industry carbon footprint disclosures [69]

EU ESRS E1 (Climate Change) includes requirements to disclose Scope 1,2, and material Scope 3 emissions where relevant [70]

The GHG Protocol’s “Scope 2 Guidance” includes requirement to report both location-based and market-based (where feasible) [58]

Electricity attribute certificates (e.g., Guarantees of Origin in Europe) influence market-based Scope 2 calculations [58]

Renewable electricity reduces grid-average emissions factors for market-based Scope 2 accounting [58]

RMI (Responsible Minerals Initiative) notes that supply-chain due diligence impacts sourcing choices affecting emissions in downstream industries [82]

Leather production has substantial water and carbon footprints; LCA reports often cite multiple tCO2e per tonne hides depending on system boundaries (benchmark) [21]

Diamond/LCA benchmarks show large variation; watch gemstone footprints depend on mining and processing energy (benchmark) [83]

The Kimberley Process statistics reflect diamond supply traceability affecting responsible sourcing but also enabling emissions-relevant chain assessment [84]

The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) provides assurance data for member sustainability, affecting sourcing emissions assessments [85]

The London Metal Exchange (LME) commodity carbon intensity discussion impacts how metal sourcing is chosen (context) [86]

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) covers embedded emissions in certain goods (metals); its methodology affects upstream sourcing emissions [68]

The EU CBAM Annex I lists sectors like iron and steel, cement, and aluminum, which are relevant to watch components and packaging [68]

The Silver Institute provides sustainability and lifecycle information intended for responsible investment and supply-chain analysis [33]

The responsible jewellery chain of custody helps source metals with lower likely environmental impact, affecting emissions in product footprints [85]

The RJC Code of Practices requires greenhouse gas emissions management for members (as part of broader sustainability practices) [87]