Burger King·Food Service / Restaurants·Miami-Dade County, United States·Founded 1954·Last verified 31 May 2026
24
out of 100
Significant gapsPending Review

Burger King's sustainability performance is dominated by supply chain deforestation, greenwashing, and a beef-heavy business model that fundamentally conflicts with emissions reduction. RBI reports Scope 3 emissions but uses intensity targets that allow absolute emissions to rise as the chain expands to 40,000+ restaurants. Water impact is entirely unreported.

The calculation

Every score shows its working.

Same formula for every company. No curve. No private weighting.

SINK = (0.3 × Base + 0.7 × Performance) × Scale
Industry base impact
Food Service / Restaurants sector ceiling.
45 / 100
Performance score
Sum of the 10 rubric questions, scored 0–10 each.
30 / 100
Raw score
Weighted average before scale penalty.
(0.3 × 45) + (0.7 × 30) = 34.5
Scale penalty
Multiplier based on absolute emissions volume — physics-first.
× 0.7
Final score
Rounded. Significant gaps.
24 / 100
The ten questions

Where Burger King is strong, and where it isn't.

Strongest on Carbon Footprint — Supply Chain and Transparency & Accountability (5/10, 5/10). Weakest on Controversies & Red Flags and Water Impact (1/10, 1/10).

Where the evidence comes from

Every document used, listed.

16 sources used in this assessment. All publicly available. Each row shows which rubric questions it informed.

11 of 16 sources are third-party verified or public record.

[1]Self-reported
2024 Restaurant Brands for Good Report
2025
Q1Q2Q3Q4Q8
View →
[2]Self-reported
RBI Sustainability — Planet, Climate Action
Ongoing
Q1Q8
View →
[3]Public record
Restaurant Dive: RBI targets 40k stores, 60B sales in 5-year plan
Unknown
Q3
View →
[4]Public record
The Cool Down: Burger King Renewable Energy Iberdrola
2024
Q4
View →
[5]Third-party verified
Sierra Club: Burger King Linked to Million-Plus Acres Deforestation
Unknown
Q5Q10
View →
[6]Third-party verified
Rainforest Rescue: Tell Burger King and Cargill to Stop Deforestation
Ongoing
Q5Q10
View →
[7]Self-reported
BK Blog: Grasslands and Wildlife Conservation Partnership
Unknown
Q5
View →
[8]Public record
Pack World: Burger King Green Packaging Pilot Program
Unknown
Q6
View →
[9]Public record
Waste360: Burger King TerraCycle Loop Reusable Packaging Pilot
Unknown
Q6
View →
[10]Third-party verified
UNEP: What's Your Burger? Water Footprint Story
Unknown
Q7
View →
[11]Third-party verified
Harvard Sustainability Case Study: Burger King's Barely Trying
Unknown
Q7
View →
[12]Public record
ESG Today: Burger King Parent Aims to Cut Emissions in Half by 2030
Unknown
Q8
View →
[13]Self-reported
RBI Sustainability Policies and Reports
Ongoing
Q9
View →
[14]Self-reported
RBI Releases Annual Restaurant Brands for Good Report
2025
Q9
View →
[15]Third-party verified
Food Service Footprint: Greenwashing Rampant in Food and Drink Sector
Unknown
Q10
View →
[16]Third-party verified
Greenwash.com: Whopper of a Claim Analysis
Unknown
Q10
View →

If you believe a source has been misread or a newer version exists, submit a challenge.

Burger King in context

Where Burger King sits among food service / restaurants peers.

Among the 46 major food service / restaurants brands we've scored, Burger King is tied =42nd of 46, with 1 other.

=42/46
Burger King's rank
34
Industry average
19
Industry low
50
Industry high
How this score has moved

Burger King's score over time.

today

Score history begins 4 April 2026.

As Burger King's score updates, the trajectory will appear here.

We're backfilling historical scores for FTSE 100 and S&P 100 companies over the coming weeks.

What's being contested

This score is not currently being contested.

Every challenge is published. We'd rather be corrected than wrong — that's the whole point.

No challenges submitted yet. If you have evidence that contradicts this score, you can challenge any question above — cite a public source and we'll review it.

About Burger King

Burger King is a global fast-food chain founded in 1954 and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, United States. Owned by Restaurant Brands International, it operates 19,700+ franchised restaurants across 100+ countries, serving primarily flame-grilled beef burgers, chicken, and breakfast items. A major player in the QSR sector.

Founded
1954
Headquarters
Miami-Dade County, United States
Employees
~35,000
Annual revenue
$1.97B (FY2012)
Company website ↗
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