Brenntag is a German chemicals distributor headquartered in Essen; its roots go back to 1874.
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Brenntag's total emissions fell to 24.2 MtCO2e in 2025 against SBTi-validated targets, though its largest category is estimated with no supplier data. North Carolina is suing its US subsidiary over repeated water pollution near Durham. It rates biodiversity as not material, and it belongs to US chemical trade groups including AFPM and the American Chemistry Council.
Brenntag scores 35/100 (Below expectations) on SINK's independent climate assessment, scored from public data only. Fees pay for the review, never the result. Last verified October 2026.
That places Brenntag joint 507th of 883 companies scored, and 7th of 18 in Shipping / Logistics.
Where Brenntag sits among shipping / logistics peers.
Among the 18 major shipping / logistics brands we've scored, Brenntag sits 7th of 18.
Its three lowest-scoring questions, and what the evidence didn't show.
No site-level assessment in biodiversity-sensitive areas conducted.
63 sites in extremely high water stress areas; management plans planned for 30 sites only.
Process spill rate rose to 2.62 in 2025, a 39% increase from 2023, contradicting 25% cut target by 2030.
A score changes when the evidence does. We use new published evidence at the next rescore. Evidence that isn't public can count through an evidence review.
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Get in touch →Strongest on Carbon Footprint — Operations and Targets & Commitments (9/10, 8/10). Weakest on Nature & Biodiversity Impact and Water Impact (2/10, 3/10).
The 3 companies in the sector scoring nearest above Brenntag.
Mobico Group publishes solid sustainability governance and holds SBTi-validated targets, but absolute emissions rose 1.9% in 2024 despite the fresh commitment.
See the breakdown →Evri measures operational emissions with GHG Protocol alignment and holds ISO 14001 certification, but discloses only intensity metrics, not absolute tonnage.
See the breakdown →Bunzl reports comprehensive Scope 1 and 2 emissions with third-party assurance and has SBTi-validated targets, but absolute emissions ticked upward in 2024–2025 despite an 18% reduction since 2019.
See the breakdown →The formula and all 16 sources.
Same ten questions for every company. No private weighting.
SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale16 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which of the ten questions it informed.
12 of 16 sources are independent of the company.
“Scope 1 GHG emissions (t COe) 176,381 185,546 –4.9% 194,390”
“20% reduction in spill rate vs. 2025 (2030)”
“Scope 1 and 2 CO₂e emissions in 2025 in comparison to 2024”
“Brenntag commits to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 58.8% by 2034 from a 2023 base year.”
“more than 85% of our Scope 3 emissions come from the products we trade”
“The company posted €15.2 billion in sales, a 3.7% decline from 2024”
“Dazu ist man der weltweiten Initiative RE100 beigetreten.”
“discharging methylene chloride, 1,4-dioxane, ethanol, toluene, and acetone, thereby contaminating groundwater and surface-water”
“has repeatedly cited Brenntag for multiple violations related to water quality and reporting”
“Since 2023, the city of Durham has fined Brenntag $157,000 for violations related to water contamination.”
“accusing the Durham-based chemical distributor of illegally releasing industrial chemicals into state waters”
“American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM)”
“has agreed to a court order requiring it to stop polluted discharges, investigate the source of contamination and develop a plan to clean up the site”
“With its workforce of over 17,300 employees, Brenntag”
“A Global Chemical Giant Racks Up Violations in Durham, N.C., Where Drinking Water for a Million Is Threatened”
If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.
Brenntag is a German chemicals distributor headquartered in Essen; its roots go back to 1874. It had about 17,300 employees and €15.2 billion sales in 2025.
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