Webinar: EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) in the cocoa sector

The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) came into force on 29 June 2023. When exporting to the European market, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) must meet the requirements of this regulation. They need to demonstrate that their products are deforestation-free and not linked to forest degradation. The EUDR also applies to companies active in the cocoa sector.

During this webinar, we will explain EUDR requirements and how exporting SMEs can comply with the new regulations: what steps do they need to take? Learn from key experts how SMEs can:

• meet the demands of their current buyers;
• create opportunities to find new buyers.

We will address the following questions:

• What are the main EUDR requirements?
• What consequences does the EUDR have for cocoa exporters?
• How are supervision and enforcement of the EUDR organised?
• How can exporters meet these demands?
• What do we not know yet about the EUDR?

For whom?

This webinar is for entrepreneurs and business support organisations that are active in the cocoa sector and interested in exporting to the European market.

(Preliminary) agenda

13:00 – 13:10 CEST: Introduction and welcome

13:10 – 13:25 CEST: Key elements of the EUDR.

13:25 – 13:30 CEST: The unknowns of the EUDR.

13:30 – 13:45 CEST: EUDR enforcement and supervision.

13:45 – 13:55 CEST: Questions & answers session 1.

13:55 – 14:10 CEST: Cocoa exporters can prepare for the EUDR.

14:10 – 14:27 CEST: Questions & answers session 2.

14:27 – 14:30 CEST: Closing.

Presenters

Myrthe van der Gaast will host this webinar. Myrthe is programme manager for market intelligence at CBI. Presenters include:

Tjalling de Boer (Msc.) is a market researcher and moderator for this webinar. He studied psychology and business administration in the Netherlands. He has been active in research for over 15 years. Since 2023, Tjalling has lead the research team on the cocoa and coffee sectors on behalf of CBI. Besides his work for CBI, he mainly conducted research for SMEs, municipalities and semi-governmental organisations. In addition to doing research, Tjalling teaches research methodology and statistics at two Dutch universities. He has been director of Contenza since 2017.

Ruben Bergsma, cocoa sustainability expert

Ruben Bergsma is a cocoa sustainability expert. He is part of CBI's research team for the cocoa sector. Ruben has over 12 years of experience in cocoa, sustainability and supply chains. He also led the Rainforest Alliance's cocoa programme. Ruben has worked with the world's largest cocoa and chocolate companies. Now, he works on addressing sustainability issues in cocoa. For this, he works with industry, civil society and government organisations with a major focus on EUDR.

Julius Seinen, senior policy advisor at LNV

Julius Seinen is a senior policy advisor for agricultural raw materials and Corporate Social Responsibility Policy (CSRP). Julius works at the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV). He has been involved in the EUDR since the start of the negotiations in Brussels.

Jessica van Zetten, senior inspector EUDR at the NVWA

Jessica van Zetten is a senior inspector EUDR at the Dutch Food and Safety Authority (NVWA). Jessica has 10 years of expertise in forestry value chains. She works on EUDR at the Dutch Competent Authority.

More information

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