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Barber’s Farmhouse Cheesemakers is a family-owned business based in Somerset and the world’s oldest surviving cheddar maker. The Barber family has been making cheese since 1833, using traditional methods, locally sourced milk, and its own heritage starter cultures. The business combines generations of cheesemaking experience with a commitment to quality and sustainability.

Manufacturing

Tracking Scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions

GHG reporting and product carbon footprints for a leading UK cheesemaker

1

complete GHG inventory

4

years of emissions data

6

product types now have carbon footprints

What did the client need?

Barber’s needed support to calculate its greenhouse gas emissions across the full value chain and the carbon intensity of its products. This would allow the business to track its decarbonisation progress, support annual reporting, and respond to requests for information from customers.

Barber’s also wanted advice on the next steps for delivering its SBTi-validated net zero targets.

How did BIP.Verco support the client?

We began with a detailed review of the GHG inventory boundary to ensure that all relevant emissions sources and subsidiaries were included. Then, we mapped the required data, making the collection process clear and straightforward.

We created a multi-year GHG inventory model in Excel, providing a robust basis for consistent annual reporting while allowing for future changes to the scope, boundary, or calculation methods.

We calculated Barber’s’ Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions in line with the GHG Protocol and relevant sector guidance. Where data were unavailable, we used appropriate internal and external datasets to fill the gaps.

We also produced a methodology document recording the approach, data sources, and data owners.

The model included product carbon intensity calculations using two allocation methods. We documented the calculation method to support consistent reporting from year to year and help Barber’s respond confidently to customer requests. We also produced a briefing note for external use, setting out the boundaries, methods, and emission factors applied.

What was the result?

We were pleased to provide Barber’s with a multi-year GHG emissions model that supports ongoing tracking and comparison between reporting years. The model also calculates the carbon intensity of six product types.

This work helped Barber’s deliver the objectives of its three-year plan to measure Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions and document its plans for continued emissions reductions.

BIP.Verco has given Barber’s a robust and practical way to measure our greenhouse gas emissions and product carbon footprints. We value the team’s expertise and responsiveness, and their ability to explain complex requirements clearly. The tools they have developed support both our annual reporting and our wider decarbonisation plans.

Adam Elias, Finance Director, Barber's Farmhouse Cheesemakers

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