A catalyst for methane emission reduction from Big Meat and Dairy?

The report examines the potential of the EU's CSRD and CSDDD to drive methane emission reductions in the meat and dairy industries. While the CSRD mandates transparency and disclosure of greenhouse gas data, the CSDDD requires companies to act on adverse environmental and health impacts. The document highlights that despite 'simplification' via the Omnibus I process—which reduced the number of companies in scope and removed specific climate transition plan requirements from the CSDDD—these directives still provide levers to address methane as a precursor to ground-level ozone. It argues that mandatory reporting and due diligence can prevent companies from relying on 'end of pipe' solutions like biogas and instead push for upstream mitigation.

• The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) shifts sustainability reporting from a voluntary to a mandatory, audited process for approximately 5,000-7,500 companies, requiring the disclosure of scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions, including methane.
• The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) mandates that companies prevent, mitigate, and end adverse environmental and human rights impacts, including those related to air pollution and ecosystem degradation caused by methane as a precursor to tropospheric ozone.
• The 'Omnibus I' deregulation process significantly weakened both directives by reducing the number of companies in scope for the CSRD by more than 85% and removing Article 22 on Climate Transition Plans from the CSDDD.
• Methane emissions often constitute a significant portion of scope 3 emissions for large meat and dairy companies, typically ranging between 20% and 50% of the total.
• There is a risk that companies will use the CSDDD to justify 'end of pipe' solutions like biogas rather than upstream prevention, despite biogas only providing a limited emissions saving (e.g., 2.6% per kg of milk in the case of Arla).
• The report identifies a lack of methane transparency in the retail and fashion sectors; none of the 20 major food retailers analyzed disclose methane emissions, and fashion companies often fail to list it as a material risk despite the high emissions associated with leather and wool.

APA

Changing Markets Foundation (2026). A catalyst for methane emission reduction from Big Meat and Dairy? https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/CSRD-and-CSDDD-A-catalyst-for-emission-reduction-from-Big-Meat-and-Dairy.pdf

Chicago

Changing Markets Foundation. A catalyst for methane emission reduction from Big Meat and Dairy? 2026. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/CSRD-and-CSDDD-A-catalyst-for-emission-reduction-from-Big-Meat-and-Dairy.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Changing Markets Foundation |title=A catalyst for methane emission reduction from Big Meat and Dairy? |date=June 2026 |url=https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/CSRD-and-CSDDD-A-catalyst-for-emission-reduction-from-Big-Meat-and-Dairy.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{changingmarketsfoundation2026catalyst, author = {{Changing Markets Foundation}}, title = {{A catalyst for methane emission reduction from Big Meat and Dairy?}}, institution = {Changing Markets Foundation}, year = {2026}, month = jun, url = {https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/CSRD-and-CSDDD-A-catalyst-for-emission-reduction-from-Big-Meat-and-Dairy.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }