EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR)

What is the EUDR?  

EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), imposes due diligence on companies that place goods linked to deforestation and forest degradation on the EU market. These goods include: beef, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy and wood.

Under the EUDR, seven commodities and their associated products must meet the requirements related to deforestation and forest degradation to be sold or exported in the EU market.

Entrepreneurs and traders who want to place these products on the EU market or export from the EU must implement a system of legality checks by performing a risk assessment and obtaining the geographical location coordinates (latitude and longitude) of the plots of land where the relevant goods were produced or obtained, as well as production dates or time range. In order to clear the goods, entrepreneurs will have to submit a declaration of legality checks together with the customs declaration, a centralized information system controlled by state institutions will be created for the input and storage of this information.

The EUDR does not apply to goods manufactured before the implementation of the regulation (except for wood products subject to EUTR requirements) or to goods made entirely from material that has reached the end of its product life cycle and would otherwise be disposed of as waste.

How to demonstrate compliance with the EUDR requirements?  

Before introducing the relevant products to the EU market or exporting them, entrepreneurs and traders must submit a declaration of legality to the competent authority. The purpose of this requirement is to guarantee that goods entering the EU market have not been obtained from lands or territories where forest degradation or deforestation has occurred since 31 December 2020.

To adhere to this regulation, operators and traders must:

• Collect detailed information that demonstrates the products comply with the EUDR;
• Carry out a risk assessment in relation to each product to ascertain the possible risk of non-compliance with the EUDR;
• Mitigate risks by carrying out independent surveys/audits, gathering additional documentation, or working with suppliers.

Operators and traders must conduct comprehensive risk assessments that take into account whether the goods have been produced in compliance with applicable local laws, while explicitly upholding the principle of free consent of indigenous peoples.

For more information on the tools developed by PEFC, please find the PEFC Webinar “PEFC: On the path to EUDR alignment” here: https://pefc.org/eudr

>>>Requirements for the Implementation of PEFC EUDR Due Diligence System (PEFC EUDR DDS) PEFC ST 2002-1:2024 standard

For more information on the tools developed by FSC, please find “FSC® EUDR Journey: Practical resources and step-by-step guidance to support EUDR compliance” here: https://www.fsc-eudr-journey.org/

>>>FSC Regulatory Module Standard (STD) FSC-STD-01-004

Both FSC and PEFC Supply Chain Standards – FSC-STD-01-004 and PEFC ST 2002-1:2024 – are optional, certified companies can choose whether to add them to their existing Chain of Custody certification scope to support their efforts to demonstrate compliance with the EUDR.