A new analysis from the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability finds that many companies significantly undercount emissions tied to global supply chains by relying on U.S.-centric assumptions in their disclosures. When researchers adjusted estimates to reflect where suppliers actually operate, they identified nearly a billion tons of uncounted emissions from Chinese suppliers alone across more than 400 companies in 2023.

Much of the gap involves Scope 3 emissions, the indirect emissions generated across a company’s value chain, including suppliers, transportation, product use and end-of-life disposal. Scope 3 often represents the largest share of total emissions reported by manufacturers. The findings underscore rising reporting, compliance and competitiveness risks for Ohio manufacturers as customers, investors and regulators demand more accurate emissions data across global supply chains. 1/13/2026