Today, July 30, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Department of Forestry organized a workshop to review the level of readiness to implement the European Union's anti-deforestation regulations (EUDR) for the coffee and timber industries in Vietnam.
The purpose of the workshop was to update the latest information on EUDR and discuss the results of the EUDR readiness review and assessment conducted at both national and provincial levels.
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| Delegates attending the workshop to review the readiness of the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) for the coffee and timber sectors in Vietnam. (Source: UNDP) |
| The EUDR, which comes into force on 29 June 2023, requires that products placed on or exported from the European market must be traceable, deforestation-free and legally produced. Larger companies importing these items into Europe must comply with the EUDR from 30 December 2024, while small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) must comply from 30 June 2025. |
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and relevant stakeholders in Vietnam have proactively adapted to the EUDR by developing and issuing an Action Plan Framework to comply with the regulation. This Action Framework provides comprehensive guidance to national and provincial level organizations, ensuring that practical actions are taken to support appraisal processes.
The workshop highlighted Vietnam's efforts in the implementation of the EUDR, especially in the coffee and wood sectors, and provided practical information to support action plans in accordance with the requirements of the EUDR regulation.
In addition to discussing data sharing, analytical methods, legality and support for smallholders, delegates discussed the experiences of several countries. For example, Peru’s national farm code system includes GPS points for more than 2 million registered farmers, with a goal of collecting 500,000 polygons by December 2024 for coffee and cocoa producers. Farmers use a self-described app to add information on land tenure, planting year and production data, supporting future traceability systems.
Indonesia’s SatuData national platform provides a range of land use and land change maps, linked to a new palm oil traceability website, allowing stakeholders to access this data and methodology for accountability purposes.
Ivory Coast and Ghana have both established national cocoa traceability systems with farm codes and cocoa plantation polygons, supporting quality control, extension services and compliance checks through digitized chain of custody information.
In Ecuador and Costa Rica, UNDP has partnered with Lavazza and Silva Cacao to pilot sustainable, deforestation-free coffee and cocoa production. The initiative includes creating a comprehensive traceability plan, implementing national zero-deforestation policies, establishing trade agreements, ensuring fair prices for farmers, and promoting sustainable practices.
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| The workshop is an activity of the project “Comprehensive sustainable landscape management through a deforestation-free sustainable development site approach in Lam Dong and Dak Nong, Vietnam” (iLandscape project) funded by the European Union. (Source: UNDP) |
“The findings of the readiness assessment will inform strategies and actions, ensuring that Viet Nam remains a leader in sustainable and deforestation-free production,” said Mr. Patrick Haverman, Deputy Resident Representative of UNDP Viet Nam.
“First of all, sharing data and maps is essential. We need to establish clear protocols on how the government will share data and maps with other parties, including the platforms that will be used and the types of data that can be shared,” he said.
Second, we need to develop analytical methods for defining forests, zero deforestation, and risk analysis.
Third, legality analysis is equally important, and finally, we must focus on supporting smallholders who face many challenges. It is important to provide smallholders with the resources and knowledge they need to comply with EUDR standards without unduly impacting their livelihoods.”
Concluding the workshop, Mr. Tran Quang Bao, Director of the Forestry Department, emphasized that this is the time when the EUDR regulation is approaching very soon, in which the wood and coffee industries along with rubber are the three industries of Vietnam that are most affected.
To implement EUDR in Vietnam, in addition to land policy regulations, sustainable agricultural and forestry development along the value chain to meet the standards and requirements of domestic and export markets requires management capacity and an interdisciplinary and synchronous approach from management agencies, stakeholders as well as the participation of businesses, suppliers, farmers and communities.
| The workshop is one of the activities of the project “Comprehensive sustainable landscape management through a deforestation-free sustainable development site approach in Lam Dong and Dak Nong, Vietnam” (iLandscape project) funded by the European Union. |
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/viet-nam-no-luc-thuc-hien-eudr-trong-nganh-ca-phe-va-go-280735.html
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