SBTi Updates FLAG Guidance to Strengthen Land Emissions Targets

The Science Based Targets initiative has released Version 1.1 of its Forest, Land and Agriculture Guidance, introducing mandatory requirements for separate scope 1 and scope 3 land-related emissions targets. The update arrives one year after the original FLAG framework launched, with more than ten companies already having submitted validated land-related emissions reduction targets.

The updated SBTi FLAG Guidance Version 1.1 introduces several technical changes to how companies in land-intensive sectors such as food, agriculture and forestry must structure their science-based targets. A key change makes it mandatory for companies to meet FLAG target coverage separately for scope 1 and scope 3 emissions in their GHG inventory. This prevents companies from using land-based removals in one scope to compensate for insufficient reductions in another. The revision took effect immediately upon publication and replaces Version 1.0.

The land sector accounts for nearly a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, making it the largest emitting sector after energy. Despite this scale, land-related emissions were historically absent from most corporate climate targets due to a lack of recognised methods and data. The updated guidance also clarifies that companies using multiple commodity pathways must meet individual commodity sub-targets separately, rather than relying solely on an aggregated FLAG target. This preserves the sector's carbon budget and ensures emission reductions occur across the most relevant parts of the value chain.

The revision also strengthens data quality requirements for target validation submissions, including more granular data on FLAG emissions per commodity and region, and disaggregated figures separating land use change from land management emissions. A further update clarifies that companies from all sectors — not only land-intensive ones — must account for land-based emissions in their GHG baselines, even when a standalone FLAG target is not required. Separately, timeline corrections align the guidance with broader SBTi resources, and language improvements have been made to the criteria summary table.

Key figure — 62% of FLAG mitigation potential from emissions reductions