What does co-product mean?
Co-product names the situation where two or more products come from the same unit process or product system, creating allocation questions for a footprint study.
co-product
A regulatory term referring to any of two or more products (3.1.3.1) coming from the same unit process (3.1.3.6) or product system (3.1.3.2).
1 official sourcessingle_source
Official definitions by source
ISO 14067:2018
ISO 14067:2018 - Greenhouse gases — Carbon footprint of products
any of two or more products (3.1.3.1) coming from the same unit process (3.1.3.6) or product system (3.1.3.2)
Reference: 3.1.3.3
Regulatory context
This term originates in ISO 14067:2018 and/or ISO 14044 LCA methodology. It is used in EU product regulation — particularly under the EU Battery Regulation (PEF method for carbon footprint) and ESPR (environmental footprint) — because both regulations require lifecycle-based quantification of environmental impacts. Practitioners applying these regulations should be familiar with these LCA/PEF concepts to correctly scope, conduct, and verify product-level environmental assessments.
Practical application
This term matters when emissions and inputs must be allocated between outputs that share the same production process.
Minespider commentary
For Minespider, co-product is an allocation-trigger term in product carbon accounting.
Common confusions
- Assuming the everyday meaning of co-product is enough without checking the official source definition.
- Using co-product as a loose generic label rather than the narrower meaning used in the source text.
- Ignoring how co-product connects to adjacent technical or product terms in the same regulatory framework.