Our CO2 footprint
Every year, we calculate the carbon footprint of the LEGO Group. Understanding our climate impact allows us to take action to improve it.
What are greenhouse gas emissions?
Greenhouse gases are released into the atmosphere, allowing it to trap heat. Some occur naturally from the ocean, animals and plants, and through human activities such as burning fossil fuels. Some are industrial gases that originate exclusively from human activity.
An abundance of these gases causes the atmosphere to trap too much heat, resulting in the global warming of the earth.
There are seven major types of greenhouse gases. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most common greenhouse gas, which is why these emissions are often referred to as carbon emissions and expressed in the unit carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).
Our CO2 emissions split
The LEGO Group operations only account for 2% of total emissions. These in-house emissions are known as scope 1 and 2 and come from gas and electricity use at our factories, offices and stores.
The remaining 98% of greenhouse gas emissions, also known as scope 3, are linked to activities outside of our own operations – e.g. the production of raw materials, distribution and transportation, and the treatment of LEGO® products when they are no longer needed for play.
Our emissions split between our operations and supply chain hasn’t changed in 2021.
Scope 1
Emissions from fuel use across LEGO factories, offices and stores
Scope 2
Emissions from electricity use across LEGO factories, offices and stores
Scope 3
Emissions from outside the LEGO Group operations, from our supply chain
“Long-term emissions reduction is not a straight line, but we’re on the right path. We know the challenge is large and urgent, and we are prepared to do what it takes.
We’re making investments and business decisions in sustainable materials innovation, manufacturing technology and our supply chain. These actions combined will increase our carbon footprint in the short term, but will ultimately allow us to hit our target in 2032.”
Tim Brooks, VP Environmental Responsibility
The LEGO Group
2021 CO2 emissions
In 2021, total greenhouse gas emissions were 1.5m tCO2e, up from 1.2m tCO2e the previous year. We remain on our path to long-term emission reductions, however, emissions increased in the near-term due to investments to support our transition to more sustainable operations and growing demand for products.
• We’ve purchased new equipment, including machines for paper-based packaging, and more energy efficient molding machines.
• Demand for LEGO products has increased significantly, which has contributed to company growth in new and existing markets.
• Temporary, alternative transportation routes were used to manage the impact of pandemic-related disruptions to the global supply chain. Improved distribution data is also available to support more accurate calculations.
We continue to invest in carbon reduction initiatives to significantly lower the climate impact of the LEGO Group by 2032.
Explore our methodology
Our carbon inventory reports on all greenhouse gases covered by the UNFCCC/Kyoto Protocol for scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. It’s also known as a greenhouse gas inventory.
Our inventory follows the most recent standards and guidelines published by the GHG Protocol Initiative. The carbon inventory is annually verified by an external party.
In our greenhouse gas inventory, we account for all emissions from operations over which we have operational control.
