This page is part of our public exclusion list — a transparency tool that shows which companies we screen out and why. It is not investment advice, and it is not an accusation. But it is subject to change as our understanding of the facts evolves.
Lufthansa Group operates one of the world’s largest airline fleets, generating significant greenhouse gas emissions inherent to its core business of air transport. The company’s climate impact is substantial relative to its sector peers, with its operations heavily reliant on fossil-based jet fuel.
The company has faced repeated regulatory and legal challenges in Europe over misleading environmental claims. In 2024, Deutsche Umwelthilfe sued Lufthansa, alleging its climate impact calculations omitted non-CO2 warming effects from flights. In March 2025, a German court ruled Lufthansa could no longer use certain claims around CO2 compensation in its advertising. Following coordinated EU pressure, Lufthansa was among 21 carriers that agreed in November 2025 to drop “carbon-neutral flight” marketing and to substantiate any future environmental claims.
While Lufthansa publishes sustainability reports and supports the industry’s net-zero-by-2050 ambition, its near-term decarbonization relies heavily on offsetting and sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which currently constitute a minor fraction of its fuel mix. The company’s fleet renewal and efficiency gains are ongoing, but the fundamental trajectory of its emissions remains deeply tied to fossil kerosene.
Lufthansa has been cited by European Union authorities and national courts for systematic greenwashing regarding the environmental impact of its flights. In November 2025, the EU explicitly prohibited claims that a product is carbon-neutral through offsetting, a practice central to Lufthansa's "Green Fares" marketing. A German court ruled in March 2025 that these fares misled customers by claiming flights could be climate-neutral.
The company’s internal whistleblowing system specifically lists violations of environmental obligations, including in the handling of hazardous waste and persistent organic pollutants, as reportable offenses. This indicates recognized risk areas within its operations. While the core business of air travel inherently produces emissions, the documented pattern of making misleading environmental claims about that impact constitutes a form of ecological damage, as it misdirects consumer action and public policy away from actual pollution reduction.
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Companies appear on our exclusion list based on our investment judgment — not because they've done anything illegal. This is a difference of values and opinion, not an accusation of wrongdoing. Exclusion does not constitute a recommendation against investing in any company, and absence from the list does not constitute a recommendation to invest.
This information is provided for educational and transparency purposes only and should not be relied upon as investment advice. Data is drawn from independent watchdogs, NGOs, government registries, and Ethical Capital's ongoing research — see Research Sources for the full list.
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