Sunflower: Emissions
The carbon cost of a litre of sunflower oil
What this tab covers The greenhouse-gas footprint of the commodity at a global level, split by lifecycle phase: extraction (or farming), refining and processing, movement, usage, and recycling or end of life. Intensities are per unit of product; the global total combines intensity with world output. Also covers other environmental impacts and the main levers to cut emissions. Emission intensity 3.60 t CO2e per t range about 2.5-4 (indicative; Alcock et al. 2022 put sunflower below the 3.81 all-oil median) · cradle-to-retail, GWP100 Global emissions per year 76.0 Mt CO2e per year 2025/26 · 3.6 t CO2e/t x 21.1 Mt of sunflower oil (indicative)Per kg (or t) of refined sunflower oil at retail; cradle-to-retail. Intensity: Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), via Our World in Data (indicative); Alcock et al. 2022, Science of the Total Environment 829:154539 (median 3.81 kg CO2e/kg refined oil across oil crops; rapeseed 2.49, soybean 4.25). Global total: derived from USDA PSD with Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), via Our World in Data (indicative).
Share of footprint by lifecycle phase
Extraction 63% Refining / processing 31% Movement 6%Footprint by lifecycle phase
| Phase | Intensity | Share | Main sources of emissions | Notes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Extraction | about 2.2 t CO2e/t oil | 63% | fertiliser and field N2O, diesel on large farms | low fertiliser use in Russia and Ukraine keeps per-hectare emissions modest | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), via Our World in Data; stage shares approximate (indicative) |
| Refining / processing | about 1.1 t CO2e/t oil (crushing, refining and packaging) | 31% | crushing energy (often from burned husks), refining, bottles | husk-fired boilers cut fossil energy at crushers | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), via Our World in Data; stage shares approximate (indicative) |
| Movement | about 0.2 t CO2e/t oil | 6% | rail and river to Black Sea ports; tankers to India and the EU | Poore & Nemecek 2018 (Science), via Our World in Data; stage shares approximate (indicative) | |
| Usage | not in the boundary | – | cooking and frying; some biodiesel | not quantified | |
| Recycling / end of life | not applicable as recycling | – | husks pressed into fuel pellets; meal to feed; used cooking oil to biodiesel | used cooking oil biodiesel saves roughly 80-90% against fossil diesel | EU Renewable Energy Directive II default values (indicative) |
Other environmental impacts
Sunflower is deep-rooted and drought-tolerant. War damage and mines on Ukrainian farmland affect supply.
Levers to cut emissions
- Husk-fired energy at crushers to replace gas
- Better nitrogen management and reduced tillage
- Higher-yield hybrids to cut emissions per tonne
India
India grows only about 0.27 Mt of seed (2025-26) and imports most of its sunflower oil from Russia, Ukraine and Argentina, so its footprint is almost all imported plus tanker shipping through the Black Sea and Suez (Ministry of Agriculture; UN Comtrade 2024).
Emission figures are indicative global averages from the life-cycle studies named; actual footprints vary widely by site, energy mix and method.