Product Carbon Footprint Standard Implementation Readiness in Major Chinese Export-Manufacturing Provinces: An Enterprise-Centered, TOE-Grounded Mixed-Methods Assessment

As product carbon footprint (PCF) quantification shifts from voluntary practice to regulatory requirement under mechanisms such as the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, evidence on implementation readiness in major exporting economies remains limited. This study examines PCF standard implementation among 277 enterprises in major Chinese export-manufacturing provinces, together with nine industry associations and 31 certification bodies. Because enterprises were recruited through government-affiliated channels, the sample is a convenience sample, and the findings describe institutionally accessible enterprises rather than national estimates. Grounded in the Technology–Organization–Environment framework, the analysis combines logistic regression with Firth penalized estimation, outcome-aware multiple imputation and sensitivity analysis, DEMATEL–ISM expert-informed synthesis, correspondence analysis, and directed content analysis. Working-group establishment and importer disclosure requirements were the most robust correlates of PCF adoption across estimation approaches and missing-data treatments; standard availability was significant only under multiple imputation and is reported as imputation-dependent. Other hypothesized associations were not robust. Among enterprises with codable responses, 42.0% had calculated their PCF, 31.5% had established working groups, and 68.0% lacked applicable standards. Expert synthesis identified limited applicable standards as the foundational upstream barrier. The findings indicate that standard consolidation and sector-differentiated organizational support are priority intervention areas, requiring confirmation through longitudinal research.