The Hedgehog Company: LCA and EPD services snapshot

Who they are

The Hedgehog Company is a Netherlands‑based sustainability consultancy with a team in Amsterdam that focuses on product‑level assessments and corporate carbon accounting. Their site emphasizes ISO and PEF alignment, plus familiarity with Dutch and EU frameworks. Geographic signals suggest an EU focus with the ability to work internationally given English‑language service pages and references to CSRD and GHG Protocol.

Core services for manufacturers

Hedgehog markets end‑to‑end support across product and corporate needs. For product work, they describe Life Cycle Assessment delivery and EPD preparation with program‑operator guidance. For corporate work, they offer carbon footprints, scope 3 consulting, carbon reduction planning, and critical reviews for LCAs made by others. Useful starting links include their pages for LCA consulting, EPD consulting, carbon footprint consulting, scope 3 consulting, and independent LCA critical review.

EPD creation, in their words

Their EPD page outlines a classic three‑step flow: goal and scope definition, data collection with tailored spreadsheets, then LCA modeling leading to EPD drafting. They state they arrange third‑party verification and upload to selected databases and name NMD, MRPI, Environdec on the offer page. See their EPD consulting page for those specifics.

PCR selection and verification support

Hedgehog indicates it helps pick the correct PCR and the target program operator, the two levers that define the EPD rulebook and destination. Their critical‑review page also says they provide panel reviews for comparative LCAs and EPD verifications by registered verifiers where required. That service scope matters because EPDs are typically valid for five years under major programs, with updates required if results worsen above defined thresholds, so verification quality has a commercial half‑life of several years (EPD International, 2025) (EPD International, 2025).

Data collection approach and tools

On product work, Hedgehog describes custom data sheets and guided supplier outreach for primary data. On corporate footprints, they pair consulting with the Hedgehog Carbon Platform to collect, organize, and report emissions against the GHG Protocol. The platform pitch centers on templated intake, dashboards, and collaboration. Details live on their platform page and their carbon footprint consulting page.

Timelines and client effort to expect

Manufacturers should plan for workshops to set scope, questionnaires and spreadsheets for plant‑level inputs, and several review cycles to settle assumptions. Their public FAQs describe multi‑month durations driven mostly by internal data readiness and verifier scheduling, which matches market norms for consultant‑led studies. Modern buyers increasingly expect faster turnarounds and low‑friction data intake, yet most traditional LCA projects still hinge on the speed of supplier replies and ERP exports.

Industries and use cases

The site highlights manufacturing as a core audience and references construction, packaging, and electronics in articles and solution boxes. For construction‑product teams, they mention MKI scoring and Dutch NMD alignment on the EPD page, which signals fluency with Benelux procurement contexts. See Manufacturing expertise and Solutions for the blend of offers.

Market context that affects scope and cost

For corporate footprints, the heaviest lift is usually scope 3 data. Large studies confirm it dominates emissions profiles on average, which is why supplier engagement and better activity data matter early. CDP’s 2024 analysis found supply‑chain emissions reported by companies averaged 26 times their operational emissions, yet only 15 percent had a scope 3 target in place (CDP and BCG, 2024) (CDP and BCG, 2024). For products, plan around the five‑year validity window many program operators apply to EPDs when scoping renewal cycles and bid calendars (EPD International, 2025) (EPD International, 2024).

What to check before engaging any consultant

• Confirm which PCR and program operator they propose and why it fits your buyers and region.
• Ask how primary data will be collected from suppliers, and who owns the follow‑ups week by week.
• Request a verification plan with named third‑party reviewers and target publication venues.
• Align on timelines for data collection, modeling, verification, and database publication. Verify what is on the critical path.
• Clarify deliverables beyond the PDF, such as machine‑readable EPD files and change‑log support when product formulas shift.

Competitive set at a glance

In the EU and UK market, Hedgehog will often compete with boutique Dutch and Nordics LCA firms and the sustainability arms of global consultancies. Typical names buyers consider include PRé Sustainability, Anthesis, ERM, Ramboll, Quantis, and Sphera. Software‑first players also appear in shortlists when teams prefer internal modeling, then hire independent verifiers for the final step.

A quick read on working style

Expect structured workshops up front, then a data sprint that leans on questionnaires and spreadsheet templates. Reviews with engineering and operations are common to validate mass balances and yields. Verification adds calendar time, as do uploads to program‑operator portals. If your team needs a lighter lift on data wrangling and a faster track from first data pull to published declaration, make that an explicit evaluation criteria. It pays to align on who does what, when, and in which tool, before any LCA modeling begins. Otherwise, teh project drifts.

Bottom line for spec‑driven manufacturers

Hedgehog’s public materials point to a traditional consultant model augmented with an in‑house carbon platform for corporate footprints. For product LCAs and EPDs, they appear comfortable guiding PCR selection, verification, and database publication. If you are choosing a partner, weigh ease of data collection, verification depth, and publication speed alongside price. Those three factors tend to decide whether your EPD shows up in time to win the bid.