Why is corporate carbon footprinting more complex for food companies than for other industries?

For most food companies, 80–90% of emissions sit in Scope 3, primarily in purchased agricultural goods. Unlike energy or transport emissions, agricultural supply-chain emissions vary dramatically by origin, farming practice, and processing method. Generic carbon accounting tools handle energy and facilities data well. They struggle with the ingredient-level complexity that makes up the majority of a food company's footprint.

What's the difference between spend-based and activity-based Scope 3 calculation, and does it matter for CSRD?

Spend-based calculation multiplies procurement spend by an industry-average emission factor. It's fast to implement but produces results too coarse to identify which suppliers or ingredients drive emissions, and too generic to hold up under CSRD's traceability and assurance requirements. Activity-based calculation models actual quantities, origins, and production methods. It takes more effort to set up, but produces results specific enough to inform sourcing decisions and survive external review.

How does Carbon Maps handle SBTi FLAG requirements within a corporate carbon footprint?

FLAG (Forest, Land and Agriculture) guidance requires food companies to separate land-use and agricultural emissions from fossil fuel emissions when setting science-based targets. Carbon Maps' methodology is aligned with SBTi FLAG guidance, so your corporate footprint is structured to support both target-setting and progress tracking under the FLAG framework from the outset.

How does the corporate carbon footprint connect to product carbon footprints in Carbon Maps?

In Carbon Maps, the corporate and product layers share the same underlying data model. Scope 3.1 emissions in your corporate footprint draw directly from the ingredient-level data that powers your product carbon footprints, eliminating double entry and ensuring the two inventories stay consistent. When product-level data updates, your corporate footprint updates with it.

Corporate Carbon Accounting for FMCG - Scope 1, 2, 3

Why Carbon Maps

Depth that generalist platforms can't match.

Not a generic carbon accounting tool with a food filter. One engine built on food and beverage data, from the products you buy to the group number you report.

01 - Ingredient-level Scope 3.1

Modeled from the recipe up, not estimated from spend.

Most platforms multiply spend by an emission factor and move on. Carbon Maps models Scope 3.1 from the ingredient and stage level, using the same engine as your product carbon footprints, with a FLAG / non-FLAG split on every line.

02 - Built for complexity

The organisational complexity of food & bev, handled.

Sites, entities and macro-entities that mirror your organisation and change with it. Intra-group flows are eliminated at three levels, so the same tonne is never counted twice. Built for the way large food businesses actually operate.

03 - Audit-ready by design

Every modelling choice documented, traceable, and defensible.

Every line points to its source file, its emission factor and who changed it. Restore any version, and report in GHG Protocol, BEGES-R or ISO 14064-1.

The platform

From raw files to a consolidated group report.

01 · Data collection

Get the right data in, without the manual chase.

Customisable ingestion templates, native ERP and procurement connectors, and contributor workflows that distribute the data collection work across your organisation.

Native ERP, accounting, and procurement connectors with full API access

Customisable ingestion templates adapted to your data structure

Real-time progress tracking, task allocation, and completion KPIs across contributors

Role-based access for contributors, reviewers, and validators across entities and sites

02 · calculation

Full Scope 1, 2 and 3 calculation across your entire organisation.

A calculation engine that handles the full GHG inventory, with methodology-correct workflows for each category and built-in reconciliation across scopes and entities.

Purpose-built workflows per GHG category, not a generic data entry form

Covers all 15 Scope 3 categories, with activity-based modeling where spend-based estimates fall short

Built-in double-counting detection and cross-scope, cross-entity reconciliation

Multi-entity, multi-site, multi-BU consolidation with reporting at any level: site, BU, country, product line, group

03 · Disclosures & reporting

Audit-ready output across every major framework.

Every calculation documented and traceable, with multi-methodology exports structured for the frameworks your stakeholders require.

BEGES, GHG Protocol, CSRD/ESRS E1, CDP, TCFD, GRI, SBTi

Audit-ready exports with traceable calculations for third-party assurance

Version control capturing changes between reporting periods and why

See our guide to CSRD compliance for Food & Beverage →

Frequently asked questions

What to know about corporate carbon accounting for food and beverage companies

Practical answers on Scope 3.1, group consolidation and audit-ready reporting.

Why do large food and beverage companies outgrow generic carbon accounting tools?

For a food and beverage company, 90–95% of the corporate footprint sits in Scope 3.1: the ingredients, packaging and inputs it buys. Generic tools estimate that figure from spend, so a recipe change and a price change look the same. They also treat the group as a flat list of entities and leave intra-group flows to a spreadsheet. Carbon Maps was built for multi-site food and beverage groups, where group structure, internal flows and audit requirements make those shortcuts unworkable.

How does Carbon Maps calculate Scope 3.1 and the SBTi FLAG split?

Carbon Maps calculates Scope 3.1 from product-level footprints rather than spend. Each purchased product is assessed line by line by the Procurement engine, the same engine that produces Carbon Maps' LCA-grade product carbon footprints. Every line is split into FLAG and non-FLAG emissions, so the FLAG share needed for SBTi target-setting is available at product, entity and group level without a separate calculation.

Does Carbon Maps' corporate carbon footprint cover all 15 Scope 3 categories?

Yes. Carbon Maps covers all 15 Scope 3 categories defined by the GHG Protocol, with purpose-built workflows for each category. For food companies, particular depth is applied to Category 1 (purchased goods and services), where ingredient-level modeling replaces spend-based estimates.

Can Carbon Maps model a group whose structure changes every year?

Yes. Carbon Maps models a group on three levels (sites, entities and macro-entities), renamed to match your organisation. Sites can be activated or deactivated at any date, so their emissions only count for the months they belong to the group. Headcount, production volume and revenue per entity drive intensity ratios and fill data gaps, and each new reporting year starts from the previous year's structure.

How does Carbon Maps avoid double counting intra-group flows?

When a feed mill sells to a poultry unit in the same group, both entities report the same flow. Carbon Maps detects internal flows at line level, in freight and production inputs, and eliminates them at three levels: between sites within an entity, within a macro-entity, and across macro-entities. Each step shows the tonnes eliminated and the lines behind them, and every eliminated line can be opened, reclassified and exported for the audit file.

Can we import our own files instead of filling in a template?

Yes. Each activity has its own Carbon Maps template, but your own exports also work as long as the mandatory data is present. Carbon Maps' AI reads each line's label, unit and country, matches it to a catalog item and selects the best emission factor according to your database preferences, so a line reading "natural gas NL" becomes Natural gas (Netherlands). Every line is previewed before validation and can be overridden at any time.

Can an auditor trace a number back to its source?

Yes. In Carbon Maps, every line points to its source file, its emission factor (with source, scope, value and data quality) and the person who last changed it. The full history of files, uploads and manual edits is kept, and any previous version can be downloaded or restored. Emission factors are governed in a central Factor Hub with mapping rules, coverage and data-quality scores, so methodology choices stay consistent across the group.