How do I calculate the carbon footprint of a saree?

Start with the fabric: yarn per saree including border and pallu, then weaving power. Add dyeing, printing or zari work and finishing steam, divide the unit's energy by sarees finished, and state the fibre, length and weight.

Fabric

• Yarn by fibre and weight: silk, cotton, polyester or viscose.
• Zari or metallic thread by weight.
• Power loom electricity, or handloom with no machine energy.

Processing and packing

• Dyeing or printing: dye, chemicals and steam per metre.
• Finishing, calendering and folding.
• Boxes, tissue and poly covers.

Per saree

Report per saree with its fibre, length and weight. A heavy silk saree with zari and a light printed polyester saree are very different products.

Worked example: saree unit per saree (one month)

• Electricity: 20,000 kWh x 0.710 = 14,200 kg CO2
• PNG: 2,500 SCM x 2.05 = 5,125 kg CO2
• Sarees finished: 10,000
• Plant total: 19,325 / 10,000 = 1.933 kg CO2 per saree
• Add yarn, zari and dyes for the full figure

Inputs are illustrative; use your own bills and production records.

What Senseible does here

Senseible reads the plant's electricity bills (CEA grid factor 0.710 kg CO2 per kWh, CO2 Baseline Database version 21.0) and fuel invoices (IPCC 2006 defaults) into a fingerprinted Scope 1 and 2 record, the plant-level input to a per-unit figure. Bought-in materials go to the supplier evidence trail; product reports are self-declared drafts.

• Product carbon footprint calculator
• Silk fabric footprint
• Handloom fabric footprint
• Printed fabric footprint
• Textile industry

Sources: GHG Protocol Product Standard, ISO 14067:2018, Carbon footprint of products (iso.org), IPCC 2006 Guidelines, Volume 2 Energy (fuel defaults), CEA CO2 Baseline Database, version 21.0

Last reviewed 2026-10-20.