After the highly concerning announcement in September that the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) would be postponed yet again—and the equally concerning rumors that the regulation would be watered down even further—the Rainforest Alliance is relieved by the European Commission’s clarification today. We commend the Commission for maintaining the implementation date of 30 December 2025 for large companies (though we have reservations about some of the arrangements proposed to facilitate compliance). We are pleased that our strong message to the Commission to preserve the EUDR and its timely implementation—shared with many partners—has been mostly heard.
While the Commission has proposed some simplifications to benefit small operators in low-risk countries, in practice, that only helps EU forest owners and farmers—it does nothing for the majority of smallholder farmers who don’t fall in that category. We reiterate our call to action to also address collectively the specific challenges millions of smallholders face in producing EUDR-compliant products, and the disproportionate burden placed on their shoulders to do so—despite the fact that they are not considered operators under the EUDR. We call on companies and governments to ensure, now more than ever, that smallholders—as the most vulnerable stakeholders in global supply chains who are overexposed to poverty—are meaningfully and adequately supported to adapt to the EUDR.
The Rainforest Alliance stands ready to continue supporting stakeholders in the cocoa and coffee sectors who are willing to work toward furthering their sustainability initiatives. We have, for example, fast-tracked changes to our certification program in order to support our partners in showing EUDR compliance and will continue working with farmers and companies to help them prepare. We reiterate our strong opposition to watering down the EUDR, and call onto the European Parliament and the Council to refrain from further amending the Commission’s proposal, so that it may be adopted swiftly and everyone can work toward its implementation with confidence.
The fight to protect the world’s forests is at the very heart of the Rainforest Alliance’s mission. Together with farmers and forest communities, scientists, governments, companies, and citizens, we are working diligently in more than 60 countries to cultivate sustainable, rural economies—the most widely proven strategy to keep our forests standing.
