Why fertilizer matters for Scope 3
Fertilizer is a critical input to modern agriculture. It is also an upstream source of emissions for many food, beverage, agriculture, and retail companies.
The challenge is that downstream buyers often do not buy fertilizer directly. They buy crops, ingredients, commodities, or finished products. That makes it difficult for them to support lower-carbon fertilizer production through conventional procurement.
Who benefits from fertilizer EACs?
| Participant | Potential benefit |
|---|---|
| Food and beverage companies | Support upstream fertilizer decarbonization connected to agricultural supply chains. |
| Retailers | Address emissions embedded in food and agricultural products. |
| Fertilizer producers | Monetize environmental attributes from eligible lower-carbon production. |
| Reporting stakeholders | Review documentation showing production linkage, issuance, transfer, and retirement. |
How a fertilizer EAC transaction can work
A fertilizer or ammonia producer generates eligible lower-carbon production. S3 Markets reviews the relevant production and emissions documentation. Certificates are issued and linked to that production record.
A downstream buyer purchases and retires those certificates to support upstream supply chain decarbonization. The buyer receives documentation showing what was issued, transferred, and retired.
Why S3 Markets is focused on fertilizer
Fertilizer is a strong early market for commodity EACs because it sits deep in Scope 3 supply chains, is highly relevant to food and agriculture, and has emerging lower-carbon production pathways.