Why Arbor exists

During a recent conversation with Abdullah Choudhry, Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer at Arbor, our Co-Founder Karol Kaczmarek discussed how the company is helping product-based businesses measure, model, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Arbor (arbor.eco) offers a software platform built specifically for Scope 3 management. Its system combines bottom-up product footprints, anomaly detection, labelled secondary data, scenario modelling, supplier document uploads enhanced by AI, and an auditor view that enables rapid, transparent verification.

Choudhry’s motivation to build Arbor stems from personal experience. Growing up in a manufacturing town in Pakistan, he saw how global supply chains could create local environmental challenges while international brands relied on generalized averages and checklists. Those early insights shaped Arbor’s mission: to provide accurate, ground-level visibility across supply chains so companies can act with confidence instead of remaining stuck in planning.

🎥 Watch our full conversation with Abdullah Choudhry, Co-Founder and Chief Impact Officer at Arbor, where he explains how bottom-up, product-level carbon data, AI-assisted supplier uploads, and audit-ready workflows help companies move from measuring to reducing Scope 3 emissions.

What sets Arbor apart

Bottom-up modelling instead of top-down averaging

Most carbon accounting software relies on spend-based or industry-average factors, particularly for Scope 3. Arbor starts at the product level, building footprints from materials, processes, transport, energy, and end-of-life stages. As higher-quality data becomes available, calculations can be updated rather than rebuilt, which steadily improves precision.

Accessible for non-experts

Arbor’s platform is designed so that anyone in a business can use it. Its interface guides users through measurement and reduction planning without requiring a life-cycle assessment background.

Making imperfect data usable

Anomaly detection for unreliable inputs

Supplier submissions are checked against aggregated life-cycle models. If a textile component reports an energy use of 10 kWh, the system flags it as consistent; if it reports 10,000 kWh, it signals a likely facility-level figure. Teams can resolve discrepancies before those numbers enter formal calculations.

Secondary data for missing inputs

When information is incomplete, Arbor fills the gaps using documented secondary data for routes, modes, regional grids, and process values. The system clearly labels which data is secondary so users can verify it later with suppliers. This approach keeps projects on schedule and prevents budgets from being absorbed by lengthy data-collection efforts.

From footprint to design and procurement choices

Arbor’s Hotspot Analysis helps identify a product’s emission sources and allows you to drill down into carbon hotspots. Arbor’s Prototyping feature helps plan lower-carbon reduction scenarios by testing material substitutions, supplier or location changes, transport adjustments, and process improvements.

One of Arbor’s customers is Crocs, which used Arbor’s platform to identify viable options for replacing part of a petrochemical input with used cooking oil. The first implementation reduced per-shoe emissions by about 6% and the company’s total Scope 3 emissions by roughly 3%, exceeding the effect of many office-focused initiatives. Scopes 1 and 2 together represented only about 2.5% of Crocs’ total footprint, a pattern typical for product manufacturers where Scope 3 dominates.

Supplier engagement that scales

Relying on spreadsheets and email threads is unsustainable when managing hundreds of suppliers. Arbor allows suppliers to upload existing documentation, such as utility bills, bills of materials, or origin certificates. AI then extracts relevant data, runs anomaly detection, and applies secondary fills where needed. The system also prepares structured requests for clarification, reducing repetitive manual work and ensuring consistent, usable data from suppliers worldwide.

Ready for assurance without the audit grind

Accuracy is essential, but lengthy audits can slow progress. Arbor’s auditor view is aligned with ISO, the GHG Protocol, SBTi, and similar frameworks. External assurance providers can trace every figure, assumption, and source directly within the platform. In one client case, an audit that typically takes three months was completed in about a day and a half, significantly reducing costs and maintaining scientific rigor.

Regulations: a push to start, not the end goal

Frameworks such as the EU’s CSRD, the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and California’s SB 253 / SB 261 have increased the urgency of emissions reporting, though changing scopes and timelines often create uncertainty. Regulation is a common entry point for companies that are early in their sustainability journey, while their leading clients act independently of mandates. The greater opportunity lies in helping businesses understand the purpose behind regulations so they can turn strong disclosures into risk reduction and commercial advantage.

Scale and scientific rigor

Arbor combines automation with scientific review. Users can build and iterate on footprints quickly, while independent auditors apply validation through a dedicated view. This separation of responsibilities ensures scalability without compromising traceability or accuracy.

The next five years: putting carbon in the contract

As Choudhry explained during our discussion, the next major shift in sustainability will happen when carbon metrics are negotiated alongside price and volume.

If a supplier can deliver jeans with 30% lower embedded emissions for a 5% premium, that trade-off belongs in procurement meetings, not in a separate sustainability conversation years later. Arbor’s long-term vision is to make such carbon-informed transactions routine by providing auditable product-level data at the speed of business.

Practical takeaways for teams starting now

Want to move from measurement to action? Start at the product level instead of the corporate level. Use secondary data transparently to maintain progress while awaiting supplier confirmations. Get stakeholder buy-in by ensuring they understand why sustainability matters and how each department’s efforts increase sustainability's ROI.

Prototype supplier and material changes digitally before committing capital. Engage auditors early through structured digital access to shorten verification cycles. Most importantly, include carbon performance in procurement and design decisions where most emissions originate, turning sustainability from a reporting task into a competitive advantage.

Starting your sustainability journey

1. Model products first. A bottom-up product view reveals actionable hotspots hidden by corporate averages. See how to calculate the carbon footprint of a product.

2. Label data quality. Keep moving with secondary data, but make provenance visible so improvements can be targeted.

3. Prototype changes digitally. Test supplier switches, material swaps, and route changes in software before committing capital. See Arbor’s prototype feature.

4. Automate supplier intake. Accept real documents, enrich them with AI, and escalate only what needs human review.

5. Invite auditors early. Use an auditor view to shorten cycles, lower costs, and build executive confidence.

6. Buy with carbon in mind. Evaluate vendor offers for emissions performance alongside price and lead time.