A customer requests your carbon footprint:
where to start
- 22/08/2026 Environmental criterion in public contracts
- 01/01/2027 Requests capped at the VSME
- 19/03/2027 Omnibus transposition
A customer, a public buyer or EcoVadis asks for your carbon footprint: the 7 questions to address, prices and the Diag at €6,000 excl. VAT payable by you.
A real projectAlternea: a Bilan Carbone® to respond to retail customersFruit and vegetable trading, customers in retailRead about the project
Special caseDo you have more than 500 employees?BEGES reporting is mandatory for you (from 250 employees in French overseas territories): at least scopes 1 and 2 and a transition plan, published every 4 years on ADEME's platform, subject to a €50,000 fine. Diag Décarbon'Action is not available to you.BEGES: thresholds, frequency and fine ↗
Special caseDoes your customer request a product's footprint?It is calculated through a life cycle assessment (ISO 14067), which the company's Bilan Carbone® cannot replace. Below 250 employees, Bpifrance's Diag Éco-conception funds 60 to 70% of a first LCA.LCA or Bilan Carbone®: which to choose ↗They have commissioned Celsius
To address, in order.
Is my company required to calculate its carbon footprint?
Not under BEGES below 500 employees (250 in French overseas territories), and the CSRD will only cover companies with more than 1,000 employees and turnover above €450 million once Directive 2026/470 is transposed. The requirement comes from your customers subject to the CSRD, which must quantify their scope 3, where your emissions appear.
Ask your customer when it expects your data and in what form: its own questionnaire, the VSME format or EcoVadis.
What does a customer's request generally include?
Usually 3 elements: a Bilan Carbone® covering scopes 1, 2 and 3, a few social indicators and a written environmental policy. The voluntary standard derived from the VSME, published in the Official Journal of the EU on 21 September 2026, organises this information into around a hundred indicators and provides a framework for responding.
Respond with the data you have, stating what is missing and when you will have it.
A public buyer scores environmental performance: what should I provide?
Quantified, verifiable data: since 22 August 2026, a public contract includes an environmental clause and, if it is scored, an environmental criterion, which the French Ministry of Economy recommends weighting at 10%. A Bilan Carbone® meets criteria concerning the company; an LCA or an FDES meets those concerning the product.
If you do not yet have any data, propose an improvement plan with quantified targets, monitored during performance of the contract.
Bilan Carbone® or GHG Protocol: which method should I choose?
Either: the 2 methods apply ISO 14064-1, and a result can be converted from one to the other without collecting data again. CDP and SBTi require the GHG Protocol format, and a “verified” assessment also requires an independent third-party check under ISO 14064-3.
If a customer, parent company or investor uses CDP or SBTi, ask the provider for results in the 2 formats.
Should I use software or a consultancy?
Self-service software, billed at €2,000 to €9,000 per year, is sufficient for a service-sector SME with straightforward emissions categories and a trained internal lead. For a first assessment, an industrial business or a substantial scope 3, a consultancy provides accuracy that software's monetary ratios do not offer.
Before signing, check that the quotation includes scope 3, a presentation to management and an action plan, and allow 3 to 5 days of internal work.
What funding can reduce the cost?
Diag Décarbon'Action, run by Bpifrance, funds 40% of a €10,000 excl. VAT fixed fee: you pay €6,000 excl. VAT for a Bilan Carbone® covering scopes 1, 2 and 3 with a quantified action plan. It is open to companies with fewer than 500 employees, at least 1 year of activity and no GHG assessment in the last 5 years.
Wait for Bpifrance's approval, generally 2 to 4 weeks after submitting the application, before starting the project.
Where should I start?
With your eligibility for Diag Décarbon'Action, which establishes your budget before you request any quotations. Then gather 12 months of energy bills, fleet mileage, an accounting export of purchases by supplier category, travel, freight and waste.
Allow 3 to 4 months for a first assessment of a single-site SME, up to 10 months with the Diag, and give your customer that delivery date.
The dates to remember.
- 202622/08Environmental clause and criterion mandatory in public contractsIn force
- 202621/09Voluntary standard derived from the VSME published in the Official Journal of the EUIn force
- 2027 · in 3 months01/01Requests from CSRD customers capped at the VSME standard, once Omnibus is transposedNext deadline
- 202719/03Deadline for transposing Omnibus in France, which narrows the CSRD's scope
What it costs.
Through a consultancy, a Bilan Carbone® costs approximately €10,000 to €30,000 excl. VAT depending on complexity. For a microbusiness, a simplified assessment sometimes costs less than the amount payable by you under the Diag.
- A Bilan Carbone® for a single-site SMEDuration: 3 to 4 months€10,000 to €15,000 excl. VAT
- The amount payable by you with Diag Décarbon'Action (€10,000 excl. VAT fixed fee)Duration: up to 10 months€6,000 excl. VAT
- A simplified assessment for a microbusiness€3,000 to €8,000 excl. VAT
Alternea:
a Bilan Carbone® to respond to retail customers.
Fruit and vegetable trading, customers in retail
This fruit and vegetable trading business, operating in Spain, Morocco and France, sells to retailers and institutional catering providers that request defensible figures. We carried out its Bilan Carbone® covering all 3 scopes by modelling the cold chain from field to point of sale, using data from its suppliers and Agribalyse rather than generic ratios, then trained its teams.
- 3 scopesincluding detailed scope 3, from field to point of sale
- 60 to 70%of emissions in upstream agricultural production
- 6 monthsproject, with 2 consultants
Your assessment funded
by Diag Décarbon'Action.
We check your eligibility, prepare the Bpifrance application, then carry out your Bilan Carbone® covering scopes 1, 2 and 3 and the action plan with your teams. We can also prepare the VSME response to your customer alongside it.
