A comparative analysis of farm-level economic and greenhouse gas emissions performance: A case study of an alcoholic beverage company’s suppliers in Ireland

The climate and biodiversity crises have prompted most industries to adopt nature-positive actions that support ecosystem functioning and decarbonisation. This shift is prominent in the food and beverage (F&B) sector, particularly multinational alcoholic beverage companies, where regulatory pressure, capital markets, and consumer demand have accelerated efforts to engage suppliers on sustainability. This paper assessed the environmental and economic performance of spring barley suppliers to a global alcoholic beverage company (BC) in Ireland as a case study. To understand performance variability, identify opportunities for improvement, and provide national context, spring barley farmers supplying the BC in Ireland were compared with a nationally representative sample in 2020 and 2023. Estimates of emissions per euro of output and per tonne of spring barley were produced to support the BC’s understanding of its Scope 3 emissions. BC supplying farms outperformed national farms economically, with higher output and margins. The BC farmers had higher total emissions in 2020, decreasing by 2023, resulting in improved emissions efficiency, with BC farms emitting less per euro of output, whilst national farms increased. Synthetic fertiliser emissions were the highest source of emissions for both years. Differences between the years in emissions and economic performance highlight the environmental and economic volatility farmers face in the tillage industry. Our study produces emission efficiency metrics useful to F&B companies, highlights the importance of harmonised data and verification methods for companies wishing to improve sustainability performance. Our findings support F&B companies in working more effectively with suppliers to reduce Scope 3 emissions accountably.