GHG Protocol releases Land Sector and Removals Standard effective 2027

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol released the Land Sector and Removals (LSR) Standard on January 30, 2026, the first global framework for quantifying land-based emissions and CO2 removals, taking effect January 1, 2027. Indian food, fibre, and apparel companies face new Scope 3 traceability requirements to trace agricultural supply chains back to farm or regional level.

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol released the Land Sector and Removals (LSR) Standard on January 30, 2026, following a five-year development process. It is the first global standard to help corporations quantify, report, and track greenhouse gas emissions and CO2 removals from land-based activities. The standard takes effect January 1, 2027, allowing a transition period. Scope covers agricultural emissions, land use change, and land management, alongside natural and technological CO2 removals such as direct air capture and geologic storage.

The standard affects food producers, fibre industries, and apparel retailers across land-intensive value chains. Companies sourcing agricultural products must trace supply chains back to the farm or regional level to ensure data accuracy, a measure designed to combat greenwashing and inform institutional investors on transition risks. Firms must also account for agricultural leakage, ensuring emissions displaced to lands outside their direct value chain are not ignored. Removal reporting remains optional but requires permanence and lifecycle accounting.

Companies should align internal data systems with the new requirements before the January 1, 2027 effective date and build farm-level traceability. The initial version excludes specific forest carbon accounting due to ongoing methodological debates; a formal Request for Information will be issued later in 2026 to gather input for a future update. Until then, firms should be transparent about chosen methodologies for any voluntary forest-related disclosures. The land-use sector accounts for roughly one-quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Key figure — Effective date: January 1, 2027