The carbon footprint of soybeans (soymilk)
Soybeans (Soymilk) emits about 0.644 kg CO₂e per 1 litre of soymilk (~3.3% protein). Below is where that figure actually comes from — every stage of the chain, not a single headline number.
Where the carbon comes from
- Land Use Change
- 0.18 kg
- 28%
- Carbon released when forest or grassland is cleared to produce it.
- Processing
- 0.163 kg
- 25%
- Turning the raw product into food: milling, refining, slaughter, curing.
- Transport
- 0.11 kg
- 17%
- Moving it from farm to processor to shop.
- Packaging
- 0.098 kg
- 15%
- Producing the packaging it reaches you in.
- Farm
- 0.093 kg
- 14%
- Emissions on the farm itself — livestock methane, fertiliser, fuel, manure.
Lower-carbon alternatives
Each emits less than half as much as soybeans (soymilk).
Similar products
Common questions
- How much CO2 does soybeans (soymilk) produce?
- About 0.644 kg CO₂e per 1 litre of soymilk (~3.3% protein), measured across the supply chain. That is roughly the same as driving 4 km in an average petrol car.
- What drives the footprint of soybeans (soymilk)?
- Land Use Change is the largest contributor at 0.18 kg CO₂e, about 28% of the total. Transport is only 0.11 kg — which is why what you eat matters far more than how far it travelled.
- Where does this data come from?
- The WRAP UK Food & Drink Emission Factor Database v2.0, which aggregates peer-reviewed life-cycle assessments. This product's figures come from Poore & Nemecek (2018).
Figures from the WRAP UK Food & Drink Emission Factor Database v2.0, which aggregates published life-cycle assessments; this product's data originates from Poore & Nemecek (2018), for global. Real values vary by farm, region and method — treat these as the shape of the problem, not a measurement of any one item on your shelf.
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