Jurisdiction
For products sold in EU
Law Summary
This regulation requires companies placing certain commodities (e.g., cattle, wood, rubber, soy, cocoa) and derived products on the EU market, or exporting them, to prove via mandatory due diligence that they are deforestation-free (post-Dec 2020) and legally produced.
Law Obligation
Applies to a range of products associated with deforestation which are listed in Annex 1 of the EUDR: cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy, and wood, (inch wood pulp, paper or paperboard) including certain items made from or containing these commodities (e.g., leather, chocolate, and furniture)
Operators and traders wishing to sell the products covered by the EUDR in the EU market (or export them from the EU) will be required to conduct extensive diligence procedures, including understanding the date and location where the commodities were produced in order to avoid facing penalties. Companies will need to conduct risk assessments to ensure that their products are deforestation-free and produced in accordance with relevant local legislation. Procedures and measures such as requesting additional information, or carrying out independent audits of suppliers, in order to mitigate potential risks will need to be adopted.
Supplier countries and territories, within and outside the EU, will be assigned a level of risk, (low, standard or high) related to deforestation and forest degradation. No product or commodity will be banned. The risk category will determine the level of specific obligations.
The proportion of checks performed by relevant enforcement agencies on operators will be according to the country’s risk level: 9% for high-risk, 3% for standard-risk, and 1% for low-risk countries.
