DEFRA 2026

DEFRA emission factors are the United Kingdom's official greenhouse gas conversion factors for corporate climate reporting. The 2026 release was published on 11 June 2026 by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). Practitioners still refer to these as the "DEFRA factors" - a name retained from the dataset's origin at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, before responsibility transferred to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and, in 2023, to DESNZ. UK organisations use DEFRA emission factors to meet mandatory Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) obligations, complete Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS) audits, and respond to Procurement Policy Note 06/21 carbon reduction plans for major government contracts. The dataset is also the default UK reference for voluntary disclosure under the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, CDP climate questionnaires, TCFD-aligned reporting, and ISSB / IFRS S2 climate disclosures. The complete DEFRA 2026 dataset covers Scope 1 direct emissions from stationary and mobile combustion, Scope 2 purchased electricity on both location-based and market-based methodologies, and Scope 3 categories spanning business travel, employee commuting, freight and goods transport, waste treatment, water supply and treatment, refrigerants, and purchased materials. Factors are published with full CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O component breakdowns alongside aggregated CO₂e values, assessed on AR5 100-year Global Warming Potentials. Greentryst currently publishes 166 verified Scope 1 fuel and bioenergy factors from this release. Scope 2 electricity and Scope 3 categories will follow as each slice completes our verification workflow.

Use DEFRA factors for UK-specific reporting and as the default UK reference when preparing SECR, ESOS, and voluntary GHG Protocol Corporate Standard inventories. They are the appropriate choice for any emission source located in or consumed within the United Kingdom, including stationary combustion at UK sites, UK fleet mobile combustion, UK-origin business travel and freight, and waste treated under UK infrastructure. Apply these factors when the operational boundary sits inside the UK or when the underlying fuel, electricity, or service is procured domestically. For multi-country inventories, pair DEFRA with jurisdiction-specific sources (for example IPCC or EPA) so each activity is matched to factors that reflect its local fuel specification, grid mix, and waste-treatment infrastructure. Always cite the DEFRA 2026 release year and the specific factor version used - auditors, CDP scorers, and SBTi validators expect vintage traceability. Re-baseline inventories when DEFRA republishes (typically every June) if the underlying factor has shifted materially, and document the transition in your methodology notes. Avoid DEFRA factors for non-UK operations, for financial-control boundaries outside the UK, or when a more granular supplier-specific or region-specific factor is available and auditable.