---
term: "Product Carbon Footprint (PCF)"
aliases: ["PCF", "carbon footprint of a product", "CFP"]
category: Concept
updated: 2026-09-08
canonical: https://verdatir.com/glossary/product-carbon-footprint
publisher: Verdatir (https://verdatir.com)
---

# Product Carbon Footprint (PCF)

> The total greenhouse gas emissions attributable to a product over all or part of its life cycle, expressed in kilograms of CO2 equivalent per unit of product.

A Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) quantifies the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removals associated with a product, following life cycle assessment principles but restricted to the single impact category of climate change. It is expressed in kilograms of CO2 equivalent (kg CO2e) per declared or functional unit.

## Standards

The two reference standards are ISO 14067, which builds on ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, and the GHG Protocol Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard. Both require a clearly defined system boundary, a functional or declared unit, documented data sources and treatment of biogenic carbon.

## Cradle-to-gate versus cradle-to-grave

Many PCFs exchanged between companies are cradle-to-gate: they cover raw material extraction, transport and manufacturing up to the factory gate, so that a customer can add the number into its own inventory. Cradle-to-grave footprints add distribution, use and end of life.

## Exchange and comparability

Because supply chains need PCFs from thousands of suppliers, industry initiatives such as the PACT Pathfinder Framework and Catena-X define how PCFs are calculated and exchanged in a consistent, machine-readable format. Even so, two PCFs are only comparable when they share the same boundary, allocation choices and background data.

## Where Verdatir fits

Verdatir validates PCF submissions against ISO 14067, the GHG Protocol and the PACT methodology, cross-checks emission factors against their sources, and preserves lineage so that a customer's Scope 3 inventory can trace every number back to its origin.

## Sources

- [ISO 14067:2018 — Greenhouse gases — Carbon footprint of products](https://www.iso.org/standard/71206.html)
- [GHG Protocol — Product Life Cycle Accounting and Reporting Standard](https://ghgprotocol.org/product-standard)