{"id":22452,"date":"2026-05-05T16:26:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T14:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.etifor.com\/en\/?p=22452"},"modified":"2026-10-05T14:18:30","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T12:18:30","slug":"eudr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.etifor.com\/en\/updates\/eudr\/","title":{"rendered":"EUDR: The European Deforestation-Free Regulation explained<\/span>"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What is the EUDR Regulation?<\/h2>\n

The main cause of deforestation in tropical countries is land clearing linked to the expansion of agricultural areas for the production of commodities such as soy, palm oil, beef, cocoa, and coffee. According to the FAO, approximately 203 million hectares of forests were lost<\/b><\/a> worldwide between 1990 and 2025, an area half the size of the European Union<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Italy is no exception to this trend.<\/strong> According to the report “Deforestation Made in Italy”<\/a><\/strong> (Etifor and the University of Padova, 2026), Italian consumption of the very commodities now regulated by the EUDR – palm oil, cattle products, soy, wood, coffee, cocoa and natural rubber – put 594,000 hectares of forest at risk between 2005 and 2023<\/strong>, placing Italy third in the EU for per capita embedded deforestation. These are exactly the product categories now subject to the due diligence obligations introduced by the Regulation.<\/p>\n

To counter this trend, the EU has introduced a new regulatory framework aimed at making supply chains more transparent, responsible, and sustainable. Regulation (EU) 2023\/1115 on deforestation-free products<\/b> (EU Deforestation-free Regulation, EUDR) aims to ensure that raw materials like soy, palm oil, beef, cocoa, coffee, rubber, and wood\u2014and many derived products\u2014placed on the EU market or exported from it, do not originate from deforested land and comply with the legislation of the production country<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The EUDR requires operators to implement enhanced due diligence<\/a><\/b> systems based on traceability back to production units and the geolocation of plots to assess and reduce the risk of embedded deforestation<\/a> along supply chains<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Results and Limitations of the EUTR<\/h2>\n

To better understand the origins and structure of the EUDR, it is necessary to refer to its precursor: the European Timber Regulation (EUTR)<\/b>. Ten years after its adoption, this regulation achieved some positive results<\/b>, such as a decrease in illegal timber imports into the EU, increased awareness among market operators regarding illegal logging, and strengthened controls along supply chains<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, achieving the regulation’s objectives often proved complex and problematic due to an implementation process that was costly in terms of both time and resources<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Implementation Issues of the EUTR<\/h2>\n

Difficulties encountered in implementing the EUTR have sparked reflection on issues that could also affect the implementation of the EUDR in Member States. Specifically, the lack of human and financial resources allocated to the Commission and competent authorities, initial delays in applying the regulation in some countries, and a limited number of checks accompanied by non-uniform sanctions hindered a shared interpretation and consistent application of the law, especially in the early stages.<\/p>\n

Entry into Force of the EUDR and the EU Simplification Process<\/h2>\n

Despite the initial intent for rapid implementation, the entry into force of the EUDR is experiencing delays. Already postponed by one year to December 2024, it was modified again in 2025 as part of the regulatory simplification process promoted by the European Commission<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

As of February 2025, the Commission presented the “Competitiveness Compass,<\/a>“<\/b> an initiative aimed at reducing reporting burdens by 25% and lightening the administrative load for businesses<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Alongside the EUDR, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD)<\/b><\/a> and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD)<\/b> were also involved in this process through the approval of the “Omnibus I<\/a>“<\/b> package. The CSRD requires companies to report structured environmental impacts and risks, such as biodiversity and land use, while the CSDDD introduces the obligation to identify, prevent, and mitigate negative environmental and social impacts throughout the value chain<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Together, EUDR, CSRD, and CSDDD constitute an integrated regulatory package acting on three complementary levers:<\/b><\/p>\n