What kind of goods should go under Household rather than a more specific entry?

Items with no closer match — general welfare or kitchen consumables that are not cleaning chemicals, sanitary products or food and drink. If a more specific entry exists for the item, use that instead, since it will usually give a more representative result.

Do cleaning products count as Household?

No — cleaning chemicals are recorded under Chemicals, since chemical composition materially changes the purchased-goods intensity. Only non-chemical household consumables belong here.

We only have a total facilities spend figure that blends several categories — what should we do?

Where possible, ask your supplier or facilities team for a breakdown by category (chemicals, hygiene, food, general consumables); if a split genuinely cannot be obtained, record the blended figure under Household and note the limitation in your methodology.

Is Household typically weight-based or spend-based?

Both kg and Unit are available; use kg where you have delivery-note weights for bulk consumables, and Unit for discrete countable items such as individually packaged goods.

Should promotional merchandise given to clients be recorded under Household?

No — client gifts and promotional merchandise are more accurately recorded under Apparel (for clothing items) or Business services/Advertising depending on the item; Household is intended for internal staff welfare and facilities consumables.

Activity data·Purchased goods & materials

How to measure emissions from Household

Household activity data is a general purchased-goods category for staff welfare and facilities consumables that do not fit a more specific entry, recorded in kg or Unit under Scope 3 Category 1. Check Chemicals, Hygiene and Food and drink first, since a more specific sub-type usually gives a more representative result than this general average. Source figures from procurement or facilities-management invoices.

Scope: Scope 3 Category 1
What activity data you need: kg, Unit
Activity data: Purchased goods & materials

What counts as Household

General household-type goods and consumables purchased by the organisation for staff welfare, kitchens, or communal areas — for example general kitchen goods and other everyday items not covered by a more specific purchased-goods entry. Excludes hygiene products (see Hygiene) and food and drink (see Food and drink).

Household is a catch-all purchased-goods entry for everyday consumables that do not fit a more specific category — use it only after checking whether a more precise entry exists (Hygiene for sanitary products, Food and drink for catering, Chemicals for cleaning chemicals) since a more specific sub-type will generally produce a more accurate result than the general Household average. This entry currently has no published sub-type breakdown, so all activity is recorded against the general Household goods/consumables average.

How to collect the data

Use procurement or facilities-management invoices for items such as office consumables, kitchen supplies and general welfare goods, recorded in kg (where weight is known) or Unit for discrete items. Because this is a lower-specificity average category, check first whether the goods are better described by an existing dedicated entry (Chemicals, Hygiene, Food and drink) before defaulting to Household — this avoids diluting more specific activity data into a general average.

What activity data you need

Collect the most specific physical unit available. Unit definitions are in Appendix I — Description of Units.

kg
Unit

Which emission scope it falls under

Household activity data typically maps to Scope 3 Category 1 under the GHG Protocol. Confirm organisational boundary and ownership before reporting.

Scope 3 Category 1

By emission scope

Scope 3 Category 1

Compliance frameworks

Compliance & reporting frameworks

Sub-types available in the platform

No matching sub-types for this filter.

Common questions

What kind of goods should go under Household rather than a more specific entry?: Items with no closer match — general welfare or kitchen consumables that are not cleaning chemicals, sanitary products or food and drink. If a more specific entry exists for the item, use that instead, since it will usually give a more representative result.
Do cleaning products count as Household?: No — cleaning chemicals are recorded under Chemicals, since chemical composition materially changes the purchased-goods intensity. Only non-chemical household consumables belong here.
We only have a total facilities spend figure that blends several categories — what should we do?: Where possible, ask your supplier or facilities team for a breakdown by category (chemicals, hygiene, food, general consumables); if a split genuinely cannot be obtained, record the blended figure under Household and note the limitation in your methodology.
Is Household typically weight-based or spend-based?: Both kg and Unit are available; use kg where you have delivery-note weights for bulk consumables, and Unit for discrete countable items such as individually packaged goods.
Should promotional merchandise given to clients be recorded under Household?: No — client gifts and promotional merchandise are more accurately recorded under Apparel (for clothing items) or Business services/Advertising depending on the item; Household is intended for internal staff welfare and facilities consumables.

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Related in this cluster·Purchased goods & materials