How is Ben & Jerry's Reducing its Carbon Footprint?
Ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, which recorded global sales of US$1.1bn in 2024, is leveraging its considerable brand influence to address its environmental impact.
Ben & Jerry's, which boasts a 29% market share of the UK’s premium ice cream market, has received recognition for its work on carbon reduction, placing 21st in Sustainability Magazine’s Top 250 World’s Most Sustainable Companies 2025. This follows a wider company ethos of championing social and environmental causes.
The production of a single pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream currently generates approximately 1.5kg (3.4lb) of carbon dioxide equivalent.
To address this emissions intensity, Ben & Jerry's has established science-based targets.
The goals include transitioning to 100% renewable energy for its company-owned facilities by 2025 and achieving a 40% reduction in emissions intensity by 2025, relative to a 2015 baseline. The long-term objective is an 80% reduction by 2050.
Addressing agricultural and dairy emissions
According to Ben & Jerry's, dairy production is the single largest contributor to its carbon footprint, accounting for 53% of total emissions.
Ben & Jerry's is exploring solutions to mitigate this, including altering cattle feed to reduce enteric emissions.
It also supports the use of methane digesters on farms that capture methane from manure and convert it into renewable energy.
Further research is underway with partners to identify additional applications for manure in land use, which could help to lower greenhouse gas emissions while improving soil health.
Ben & Jerry's is also working to implement regenerative agriculture practices to enhance soil health and increase farm biodiversity.
This strategy includes promoting homegrown feed for cattle, ensuring feed is sourced circularly and free from deforestation and increasing the amount of grass in its cows' diets.
In parallel, Ben & Jerry's is innovating its product line to include low-carbon options such as non-dairy ice cream and cookie dough.
Implementing renewable energy in operations
Manufacturing and retail operations represent less than 6% of Ben & Jerry's carbon footprint, a figure that reflects changes already made in this area.
Ben & Jerry’s reports it is close to achieving its goal of powering its global manufacturing sites, company-owned Scoop Shops and offices with 100% renewable energy.
To reduce its environmental impact further, Ben & Jerry's is investigating other possibilities, including enhanced energy efficiency, heat reclamation and electrification.
Christopher Miller, Former Global Social Mission Director for Ben & Jerry’s, explains: "In an era marked for corporate greenwashing and, at times, deliberate misinformation, we believe there is value in making the realities of our performance easy to access and straightforward to understand.”
Reimagining packaging to minimise waste
Ben & Jerry's is pursuing a strategy to minimise its single-use packaging footprint. The firm is aiming to make its packaging home-compostable, free from fossil fuels and not linked to deforestation. The majority of its plastic packaging footprint comes from its pint tubs.
In response, it is actively working on solutions to improve the US infrastructure for recycling coated paper cups.
Since 2009, its pint packaging has been FSC-Mix certified, a verification that it is free from deforestation.
Looking ahead, Ben & Jerry's plans to focus more on fibre-based packaging solutions to help protect forest ecosystems.
"If it’s melted, it’s ruined. It’s true for ice cream, and it’s true for the planet," Ben & Jerry’s says on its website.
“It’s going to take more than just the actions of individual companies and people to fight the climate crisis. We need to collectively call on our elected leaders to support a rapid transition to a clean-energy economy. We have all the tools we need - we just need the will to do it.”
