Why BrewDog is winding down its ‘carbon negative’ claim

The Scottish craft brewer became the world’s first carbon negative international beer business back in 2020: pledging to remove twice as much carbon from the air than it emits.

But it’s now backing away from that claim over the controversial issue of carbon offsets - and the cost of achieving them.

Unsustainable sustainability

Carbon offsets allow business to donate or invest in green projects in order to offset their emissions. But critics say this simply gives companies a way around making real meaningful change to their operations.

Furthermore, BrewDog says the cost of carbon negative claims has ‘gone through the roof’ – putting its actual sustainability initiatives at risk.

“We were proud to be the first carbon-negative beer company​​,” says BrewDog in this year’s sustainability report. “We got there through a relentless focus on reducing emissions in every part of our business, and then offsetting the rest by purchasing high quality carbon credits.

“These credits fund things like forestry management, tree planting and mangrove restoration. Companies use the carbon these projects remove from the atmosphere – or keep in the ground – to cancel out their own emissions.

“Unfortunately, over the past few years the carbon market has become, well, unsustainable.

“There has been a flood of low quality schemes that are dirt cheap but where the carbon benefit is highly questionable, and maybe even non-existent. At the same time, the number of high-quality, properly verified schemes has dwindled and the costs have gone through the roof.

“In fact, the cost is now so astronomical that the only way for BrewDog to sustain a carbon negative claim is at the expense of our own sustainability initiatives. That would be crazy. It would be like cutting out fruit and veg so you can afford to buy vitamin supplements!”

BrewDog is not the only company to start treating offsets warily. Across the spectrum, brands, consumers and regulators alike have started to tighten up on what offsets mean.

Last month, for example, Budweiser clarified the 'brewed with 100% renewable electricity' claim it makes in the UK and Ireland after scrutiny from advertising watchdogs​​, to ensure consumers understand that offsets are used.

Forest strategy

BrewDog says it has decided, instead, to move away from buying carbon credits and double down on its emissions reduction strategy. It will also invest further in the Lost Forest: a 9,308 acre plot of land in the Scottish Highlands purchased in 2020 to create a broadleaf woodland and pull carbon from the atmosphere.

While the extreme conditions of last summer (the fifth hottest Scottish summer on record) scorched many of the 438,950 trees planted last year, the brewer remains confident in the initiative: "We will stay the course, and we won’t let setbacks dishearten us," it says. It is now working with Scottish Woodlands to create an effective plan for the woodland.

Milestones made by the company in its interim 2024 sustainability report include reducing electricity usage at its Ellon Brewery by 7% over the first quarter of this year; and reducing plastic usage from pallet wrap by 50%.

“Some people will be disappointed that we’ll be relinquishing our carbon negative claim, but the use of funds we’d otherwise spend on carbon offsets is better invested in facilitating the decarbonisation of our process,” concludes the brewer.