Integrating Water Footprint into Global Trade Standards In 2025, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) is advancing efforts to incorporate the water footprint into emerging global standards for sustainable trade and trade finance. This initiative is part of a broader framework aimed at developing unified methodologies for evaluatingtrade sustainability, with a strong emphasis on environmental impact, particularly freshwater usage.
Key highlights:
- Water footprint measures total freshwater used across a product's lifecycle — from production to consumption.
- Inclusion in trade standards enhances the ability to assess corporate impact on water resources and supports climate- and risk-informed decision-making.
- The ICC advocates that future standards reflect the complexity of global supply chains, integrating environmental metrics (like water and carbon footprints) alongside social dimensions of trade. These developments align with global efforts to make trade more resilient, transparent, and environmentally responsible.
