Unlocking Sustainable Alternative Feedstocks at Scale: A practical guidance for industry action and policy alignment  

Sustainable alternative feedstocks are increasingly recognized as a critical lever for decarbonizing the chemicals and materials industry and reducing reliance on virgin fossil resources. Yet despite growing interest from stakeholders across value chains, adoption remains limited. Organizations face uncertainty around what constitutes an alternative feedstock, how different options should be assessed from a sustainability perspective and which approaches can support credible sourcing decisions. At the same time, fragmented definitions and inconsistent assessment approaches make it difficult to create the market confidence, demand signals and investment conditions needed to accelerate scale.  

This practical guidance establishes common definitions, sustainability criteria and assessment methods for alternative feedstocks. Developed in collaboration with ERM and a diverse group of WBCSD members, the publication provides a shared foundation for evaluating alternative feedstocks more consistently and transparently. Rather than prescribing which feedstocks should be preferred in all circumstances, it provides a consistent structure that organizations can use to assess feedstocks within their specific contexts and value chains. By creating a common language and a harmonized approach to sustainability assessment, the guidance supports more informed decision-making while enabling greater alignment between suppliers, manufacturers, brand owners, investors and policymakers.  

What’s next

This work is intended to serve as a foundation rather than an endpoint. Establishing common definitions and assessment approaches is a necessary first step, but achieving large-scale adoption will also require mechanisms that enable feedstock claims, support credible chain of custody models, strengthen procurement signals and activate demand across value chains. Building on this publication, WBCSD and its members will continue working to address these challenges and help create the market conditions needed to accelerate the uptake of sustainable alternative feedstocks at scale.