ABERDEEN, Scotland - eTradeWire -- As carbon data is increasingly becoming how suppliers are chosen, The Hidden Footprint by Jim Rankin, director at Scottish sustainability technology consultancy GO365 Solutions, helps UK SMEs in complex supply chains make sense of Scope 3 emissions.

Rankin said the increased pressure on large enterprises to meet government net-zero targets is now being felt by UK SMEs, often at the cost of existing and new business, but practical help is available.

"Every purchase order is a climate decision," he said. "But, this isn't about turning SMEs into sustainability experts. It's about making a complex topic understandable enough to act on. Large organisations are under regulatory pressure to evidence Scope 3 emissions, and SMEs need to understand what that means in practice if they want to continue supplying their customers."

For many large organisations, indirect emissions from upstream and downstream activities can make up 70–90% of their total carbon footprint, according to guidance from the Carbon Trust[1], highlighting how the bulk of environmental impact often sits outside direct operations and increasingly within supplier networks.

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As large enterprises measure and disclose their total environmental impact, emissions data requirements are moving downstream. Regulatory developments, including the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and evolving UK equivalents, are accelerating this shift, turning carbon data from a voluntary disclosure into a commercial requirement for access to key markets.

The Hidden Footprint addresses this changing landscape by explaining how Scope 3 emissions function in practice and why they matter for SMEs supplying into complex value chains. Written in plain language, the book focuses on helping SME owners and managers understand what information is being requested, where that data typically sit and how expectations are evolving.

When asked why he wrote the book now, Rankin said it began with necessity not networking.

"Over the past year I've seen too many good firms have to hand over their business to a competitor simply because they couldn't provide Scope 3 emissions data," he said. "In many cases it can be avoided, but there's currently very little practical guidance written specifically for SME owners and managers. I created a short presentation for my clients and they encouraged me to turn it into a book. We can't afford to overlook the essential role of SMEs, in sustainability goals but also as innovators and local employers. If SMEs fail, the whole supply chain fails."

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The book is structured as a short, practical read with guided prompts in each chapter and a summary of recent UK and EU regulatory developments.

1. https://www.carbontrust.com/our-work-and-impact/guides-reports-and-tools/scope-3-emissions-what-are-they-and-why-do-they-matter