The CO2 Performance Ladder (CO2 PL) is a carbon management system that can also be used as a procurement tool. Companies with a CO2 PL certificate receive an advantage when bidding for a tender and this certificate is sometimes required in the tendering process. To obtain the certificate, companies must provide insight into their CO2 emissions and set targets to reduce their emissions. The CO2 PL is owned and managed by the Foundation for Climate Friendly Procurement and Business (SKAO).

The IKEA Foundation provided a grant to SKAO in 2021 to explore the feasibility of expanding the implementation of the CO2 PL beyond the Netherlands. We also wanted to build the evidence base around the effectiveness of the tool in reducing CO2 emissions. The first step in this process was to take stock and to understand what existing evidence and data could tell us. This report summarised the status of existing evidence and identified gaps in the literature for further research.