Logistics is an opaque industry. A freight forwarder’s most trusted ally is still their office phone. For an industry that controls the movement of goods around the world, data does not flow freely.

While digitisation has just begun to unlock flows, it’s still an industry that’s grown up around data holes. Only 63% of frontline logistics employees have access to real-time operational data. Imagine if you got on a plane and the pilot was expected to land without a speedometer. That’s the reality for 37% of logistics. 

Somehow it’s perfectly acceptable to not know how your shipment got from one hemisphere to another. Yet billions of goods arrive at the right place, at the right time, every year. You’ve got to marvel at the able monstrosity global logistics has become, but it can’t continue.

The dawn of green logistics

Business-as-usual is over for logistics. The industry now has a green target on its back. Logistics accounts for 7% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, making it a critical lever in putting the brakes on climate change.

Fueled by pressure from consumers, regulation, and investors, shippers want these emissions slashed. Unsurprising given that companies cutting their scope 3 emissions have saved $13.6 billion in costs, while helping deliver 43 million metric tons of greenhouse gas savings.

At Lune, we’re hearing more and more shippers are demanding green logistics solutions in RFPs. Industry-wide, 52% of shippers have set decarbonisation goals. They want green shipping, and they're willing to pay for it.

What’s worrying is less than half of these shippers believe they can reach them.

Effective climate action is built on transparency. Yet, companies are turning to one of the most opaque industries for help — logistics. If the most effective action is informed by high-quality data, how can we mobilise an industry plagued with data black holes?

What data do you need to calculate transportation emissions?

You can only manage what you measure. Shippers need to know how many emissions they are producing, but if they want to reduce these emissions they need to find out exactly where they’re coming from. Only then can they begin to manage them. 

To calculate shipment emissions you need at least three data points. 

Shipment emissions = load (tonne) x distance travelled (km) x emission factor of transport mode/vehicle type (kgCO2e/tonne or km). 

Can you spot the problem already? If logistics service providers don’t have real-time visibility into how your shipment got from A to B, how can they know how far it travelled? How can they know which transport mode it took for each leg?

The fix is using averages to estimate emissions. If I know my 20-tonne shipment travelled from Singapore to Rotterdam on a container ship, you can use this information to estimate that it produced 1.4tCO2e. However, you’d assume it travelled the shortest feasible distance, and that all container ships have the same fuel consumption. 

While these estimates are adequate for emission reporting, and complying with regulations like the EU CSRD, they’re useless for reducing emissions. 

Why is high quality data essential for emission reductions?

High-level emission estimates are not actionable. Only precise emission calculations can inform effective reductions. 

What if the container ship your 10-tonne shipment travelled on an inefficient container ship? What if it took an indirect route? What if it took a truck from the warehouse to the port?

This level of detail is essential for making green decision-making, and therefore reducing transportation emissions. For example, if we use the emission factor of a specific vessel, rather than a generic container ship, to estimate emissions a freight forwarder can decide to book cargo on the most fuel-efficient ship travelling along that trade lane. 

However, logistics is full of data holes. Granular data, like vessel IMO numbers, are not readily accessible to the majority of TMS, Freight Forwarders, and other logistics providers. And getting this data will cost money. Not ideal for an industry that survives on 2% profit margins.

The facts remain. Shippers want to reduce their transportation emissions. So how can logistics providers give them the data they need?

Increasing data quality without increasing collection costs

Industry-leading logistics platforms, like Forto, V.Alexander, and Logixboard are partnering with Lune to give their shippers the accurate emissions data they need to inform effective decarbonisation without incurring huge data collection costs. 

By plugging into Lune’s emission intelligence they can maximise granularity by calculating emissions by:

• Using vessel-, or aircraft-, specific emission factors by inputting carrier names and dates 
• Using actual distances travelled by leveraging vessel tracking
• Inferring truck transportation between legs

By making emissions data accessible, we can embed greener decision-making into everyday workflows. Collective actions drive positive change. To learn why you need to put emissions reduction on autopilot, download our free guide: Greening the supply chain.