Carbon offsetting
Carbon credits
Carbon offsetting is buying carbon credits, each representing one tonne of CO2 equivalent avoided or removed by a project elsewhere, to balance part of a company's own emissions.
There are two kinds of credits: avoidance credits (a project prevents emissions, for example by protecting a forest) and removal credits (a project takes CO2 out of the atmosphere, for example through reforestation or direct air capture). Standards such as Verra and Gold Standard certify projects; in France, the government's Label Bas-Carbone certifies domestic ones.
Offsetting does not reduce a company's own emissions, and it does not count toward SBTi reduction targets. It is best presented as a contribution to climate action beyond the value chain, and EU consumer law now bans using it to claim a product is climate-neutral.
Go further
- Carbon neutrality, net zero and offsetting: avoiding greenwashing
- How to avoid greenwashing? Our 4 best practices