Dairytales

The report argues that Arla Foods employs 'smokescreens' to hide its significant methane footprint and derail climate legislation. It highlights a gap between Arla's net-zero pledges and its actual practices, noting that the company prioritizes intensity-based targets for Scope 3 emissions rather than absolute reductions. The document details Arla's reliance on biogas as a 'silver bullet' solution, which the authors claim incentivizes industrialization and larger herd sizes over sustainable grazing. Furthermore, it documents Arla's direct and indirect lobbying in the EU to exclude agriculture from the Methane Strategy and block plant-based alternatives in school programs. The report also examines legal challenges in Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands regarding Arla's 'carbon neutral' marketing claims, which courts found to be misleading.

• Arla's net-zero commitments largely fail to meet UN recommendations for credibility. Of nine relevant recommendations, Arla only fulfills one, partially fulfills five, and does not fulfill three. Specifically, the company lacks separate reduction targets for material non-CO2 emissions like methane and relies on unproven research and development.
• The company's Scope 3 emissions, which account for 96.5% of its total emissions, are managed via intensity targets rather than absolute reduction targets. Between 2017 and 2023, Arla reduced its Scope 3 intensity by only 6.6%, a trajectory that falls short of its 30% reduction goal for 2030.
• Arla promotes biogas from manure as a primary climate solution, but the report estimates this only saves 2.6% of emissions per kilo of milk, with a maximum unlikely potential of 15%. The authors argue that biogas incentives drive the industrialization of dairy farming by favoring larger herds and indoor housing over grazing.
• Arla has engaged in extensive direct and indirect lobbying to influence EU policy. This includes efforts to derail the inclusion of agriculture in the EU Methane Strategy and blocking plant-based drink alternatives from school food programs.
• The company's 'carbon neutral' and 'net zero' marketing campaigns in Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands were found to be misleading. In Sweden, the Patent and Marketing Court ruled that Arla's claims risked misleading consumers into believing the products had no climate impact.
• Arla's investment in plant-based alternatives is minimal compared to its dairy core. Its main plant-based brand, Jörd, represents only 0.3% of Arla UK's total revenue, and the company holds a 2.4% share of the UK plant-based dairy market compared to a 20-27% share of the milk market.
• Arla's governance structure is criticized for centralizing power in the Board of Directors, which contradicts the cooperative principle of democratic member control. This is evidenced by the company proceeding with sustainability programs despite criticism from 14 out of 17 farmer groups.

APA

kosovel, S. (2025). Dairytales. Changing Markets Foundation. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Dairytales-Final-Report-Final.pdf

Chicago

kosovel, Srecko. Dairytales. Changing Markets Foundation, 2025. https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Dairytales-Final-Report-Final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=kosovel |first1=Srecko |title=Dairytales |publisher=Changing Markets Foundation |date=February 2025 |url=https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Dairytales-Final-Report-Final.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{kosovel2025dairytales, author = {kosovel, Srecko}, title = {{Dairytales}}, institution = {Changing Markets Foundation}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://changingmarkets.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Dairytales-Final-Report-Final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }