Greif Pledges SBTi Targets After 24.9% Emissions Drop

TL;DR: Greif pledged to submit near- and long-term greenhouse‑gas targets to the Science Based Targets initiative after reporting a 24.9% drop in total emissions for fiscal year 2025. The company stressed that the decline reflects real operational changes, not just a shorter reporting period or the sale of its containerboard business.

Context: Greif announced on Wednesday that it will develop and submit near‑term and long‑term emissions reduction goals to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a global body that validates corporate climate plans against the Paris Agreement. The pledge accompanies the release of its 2025 sustainability report.

The company’s fiscal year 2025 ran from November 1 2024 to September 30 2025, an 11‑month period adopted after Greif shifted its calendar. Because of that change and the divestiture of its containerboard business to Packaging Corporation of America for $1.8 billion in September 2025, Greif said it did not want to count any emission drops that stemmed solely from those events.

Key Facts: In the reported period Greif’s total greenhouse‑gas emissions fell 24.9% compared with the prior year, reaching a lower absolute level of CO₂‑equivalent emissions. The decline appeared across scope 1 (direct fuel use), scope 2 (purchased electricity) and scope 3 (value‑chain) categories.

Greif emphasized that the reduction reflects genuine operational improvements, not merely the shorter reporting window or the removal of the containerboard segment. A company spokesperson noted they avoided claiming credit for impacts that would only be attributed to organizational changes.

As part of the SBTi work, Greif plans to add its first scope 3 target while tightening existing scope 1 and scope 2 goals, which currently call for a 28% cut versus a 2019 baseline. The company will retire that baseline because its corporate structure has shifted substantially since 2019.

What It Means: By aligning with SBTi, Greif signals to investors and customers that its climate commitments are grounded in science‑based pathways rather than internal benchmarks that may lose relevance after divestitures or fiscal‑year changes. The move also prepares the firm for future regulatory scrutiny and supply‑chain expectations.

Observers will watch whether Greif’s submitted targets gain SBTi approval later this year and how the disclosed numbers compare with the interim 24.9% drop. The company intends to publish the validated goals once they receive the initiative’s endorsement.