In light of the upcoming EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), Donau Soja hosted the “EUDR and Beyond” webinar together with the Global Nature Fund on October 17, 2023. About 100 interested listeners took part in the webinar.
To set the stage, Susanne Fromwald, Senior Advisor at Donau Soja, unveiled the most recent figures from this year’s record soya harvest. Europe’s production soared to an unprecedented 11.5 million tons, marking the largest yield ever both in terms of hectares and volume. Notably, over a million tons of these soybeans are certified under Donau Soja and Europe Soya.
Diving into the “EUDR and Beyond” section, Christoph Müller, Policy Director at Donau Soja, showed the core elements of the EUDR. The key takeaway is that using Donau Soja and Europe Soya helps in collecting and verifying the necessary data as part of the Information Requirement and for the due diligence statement. Donau Soja is already ready for EUDR pilot projects because both of our standards ensure deforestation- and conversion-free cultivation, with a cut-off date of 2008 – much stricter than the EUDR –, legal compliance as part of standard requirements, and an already-established traceability to the plot for two-thirds of the soya volume. The new part here is to digitally incorporate geo-location data for all cultivation areas into the traceability certificates.
The second take away is that the EUDR should not be viewed and implemented in isolation. The EUDR alone does not make the supply chains sustainable, it can only be the baseline. Other requirements such as the Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the EU Supply Chain Act (CSDDD) oblige companies to reduce CO2 emissions in their supply chains. Companies using Donau Soja not only have advantages in implementing the EUDR but also in meeting the requirements for CO2 reduction – as we have science-based life cycle assessments (LCAs) that show this.
In the third part of the webinar, Steffen Kemper from the Global Nature Fund showcased their new tool “elan!” that serves as a comprehensive guide for businesses, enabling them to pinpoint deforestation risks within their supply chains and implement mitigation measures.
The interest of the participants was also reflected in the questions that were asked in the chat and submitted beforehand, which were discussed to to conclude the session.
You can find the recording and the slides of the webinar here: https://www.donausoja.org/news/events/#EUDR_Webinar2023
