Feature article - Organic dyes: measuring the impact

Matteo Pagani of Kahlberg Consulting introduces the first structured lifecycle assessment initiative for organic dyes

Organic dyes are an invisible but fundamental raw material: they colour the fabrics we wear, the leather tanned in Italian districts, the paper we use every day and the wood in our furniture. Yet until now, no one had built a structured system to measure their real environmental impact. 

Available assessments rely on generic proxies, sector benchmarks that approximate the chemistry of azo, reactive, acid and direct dyes with materials that are chemically very different from their actual production reality. The result is an estimate built on assumptions rather than measurements: data that is practically useless for comparable and verifiable declarations.

Regulatory framework

This gap, which was tolerated for years, has become an urgent problem. 2026 marks a concrete turning point. The first large European companies are already subject to the obligations of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, CSRD, 2022/2464/EU) with SMEs to follow in due course.

These companies are now required to report Scope 3 emissions, including those generated by their supply chains. For a textile brand, dyes fall under Scope 3 Category 1 (purchased goods and services). Without primary supply chain data, this reporting relies on unreliable estimates that expose companies to reputational risk and, in due course, to challenges at audit.

In addition, the Digital Product Passport (DPP) being implemented under the European Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) will require every product placed on the European market to be accompanied by verifiable information on its full lifecycle environmental impact. Not estimates, not sector averages but real data, collected directly from the supply chain.

Finally, REACH continues to define the market access framework for chemical substances. Registrations, safety dossiers and supply chain communication remain the foundation of responsible dye management in Europe. 

A first for organic dyes

It is in this context that Kahlberg Consulting launched madeincolours, the first structured lifecycle assessment (LCA) initiative for organic dyes, built on primary data collected directly from the global production supply chain. It is coordinated with SPIN360, a Bureau Veritas Group company specialising in LCA. 

The initiative brings together certain European organic dye distributors and their main Asian suppliers. The goal is to build the first structured LCA benchmark for organic dyes, based on primary data collected across the full production supply chain: from chemical synthesis in manufacturing countries, through distributors’ commercial formulations, to application processes in textiles, leather, wood and paper.

The problem the project addresses is structural. Anyone needing to assess the environmental impact of a dye today has no specific data available. International LCA databases, such as Ecoinvent, contain no dedicated profiles for organic dyes. 

Available assessments use carbon black, a chemically unrepresentative material as a proxy, with approximation margins so wide that the results are worthless for comparative or verifiable environmental declarations. The error introduced by this approximation makes results non-comparable across suppliers and unusable for verifiable environmental declarations. 

madeincolours collects, directly from manufacturers, real data on chemical synthesis processes, energy and water consumption, emissions, packaging and production volumes. This data is processed by SPIN360 using methodology certified to ISO 14040 and ISO 14044, producing verifiable, comparable LCA results ready to be integrated into the sustainability dossiers of distributors and the brands that purchase from them.

Data collection in the field

The production hub for organic dyes destined for the European market is located primarily in Asia, with a significant concentration in India, where plants produce tens of thousands of tonnes/year, destined almost entirely for export. 

Some of the most advanced manufacturers have already invested significantly in operational sustainability: solar and wind installations, cogeneration systems, Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) wastewater treatment, ISO 14001 certification and ZDHC 3.1 standards for hazardous substance management. Companies that want to access the European market on grounds other than price — and that see madeincolours as the channel to do so.

Data collection does not happen remotely. The Kahlberg team conducts on-site visits to manufacturing plants and technical working sessions with production managers, gathering the necessary information and guiding suppliers through the completion of their dossiers.