Cocoa-producing countries are not yet ready to meet European rules on deforestation

About fifty actors in the sector and representatives of importing and exporting countries met on Thursday, September 26 in Abidjan, at the headquarters of the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO). On this occasion, the exporters set a common objective: to postpone for two years the entry into force of the European regulations on products resulting from deforestation (RDUE), scheduled for the end of January 2025.

In a statement read by its spokesperson, the Ivorian Aly Touré, the exporting countries denounce delays ” unrealistic with respect to the requirements of the Regulation, which range from the geolocation of all plots to the establishment of an exhaustive traceability system, a system that is not yet operational less than one hundred days from the date of implementation “.

In addition to the host country, the world’s leading producer and exporter, Brazil, Indonesia and Cameroon are among the group of twenty-three bean-producing states supporting this demand. A complaint presented by the association of European chocolatiers and prepared in New York, where numerous leaders met from September 22 to 27 during the United Nations General Assembly.

With results: on October 2, the European Commission decided in favor of a twelve-month postponement. “ Taking into account the information received from international partners on their state of readiness, the Commission also proposes to grant interested parties additional time to prepare. explains Brussels in a press release.

Guarantee the legality of the origin of the products.

Voted in the spring of 2023, the RDUE aims to prohibit the import of any product from plantations created in a forest area after 2020. The departure, therefore, of wood, cocoa, rubber, soybeans and other resources from logged areas There he is less than five years old. A seniority bonus, added to a national traceability system (SNT), established in each producing country, must guarantee the legality of the origin of the products.

However, three months before the initial deadline, the Ivory Coast SNT has approved just under 800 cocoa cooperatives, out of a target of 2,000. The world’s leading bean producer says it is confident in its ability to implement it before the end of the year. However, the Ivorian Coffee and Cocoa Council, which manages the sector, also advocates a delay that would allow “ start consultations with all interested parties and especially with the EU to define the conditions of use of the SNT to carry out due diligence because, in this aspect, we do not have clarity “.

Obviously, Abidjan wants to know your exact contribution to the verification processes planned to control the origin of food products eligible for export. An uncertainty to which the Commission attempts to respond through the recent publication of “Additional guidance documents”.

Preserve forests

In their statement, cocoa exporters also point out the complexity it represents, for “ the little players [leurs] pays”, the obligation to provide identification and geolocation data for plots compatible with the European personal data protection regulation (GDPR). An example, according to them, of “ potentially harmful effects that a hasty implementation of the EUDR could have for producing countries, in particular for small producers, in terms of the deterioration of their living conditions, the worsening of poverty and obstacles to access to the European market “.

For his part, the director of the international cocoa organization, Michel Arrion, believes that by setting 2020 as the limit year for production in deforested areas, “The EU has been quite generous because it granted amnesty for the potentially illicit past of many assets”. According to him, beyond the issue of pardon, the debate should focus more on the cost of compliance for planters.

“ Will these investments be one-time or annual? Will they pay for themselves quickly? Should they be absorbed by other costs? Integrate them into the calculation of sales prices with a marked differentiation between the farm-gate price and the export price? », asks the head of the ICCO.

According to the latter, bean exporting countries should not claim victory too quickly after having obtained the green light from the European Commission, while two European legislative bodies remain to be convinced: the Council and Parliament, which plan to examine this postponement project in the coming weeks. . Environmental defense organizations should therefore advocate for firm and immediate actions to preserve forests.