Knowledge base
The EUDR for coffee, in plain language.
Source-cited guides to the parts of the EU Deforestation Regulation that decide whether a coffee batch can be placed on the EU market. Written for the people doing the work, not for lawyers.
Start here
EUDR for green-coffee importers: what you actually have to do
The EUDR turns sourcing coffee into a documented, plot-level due-diligence exercise. Here is the shape of the obligation for an importer.
6 min readWhat the EUDR covers: the seven commodities, and where coffee products fall
Scope sounds simple until the third processing step. Here is what is in, what is out, and what the Commission has proposed to change.
4 min readEUDR deadlines, and how company size sets them
There is no single EUDR start date. Which one applies to you depends on the size of your company.
3 min readThe 31 December 2020 cutoff, and why tree-cover loss is not deforestation
The single most misread part of EUDR screening: a loss pixel is a prompt to look, not a verdict.
5 min read
Doing the work
Geolocation under the EUDR: coordinates, polygons, and the four-hectare rule
Geolocation is the backbone of EUDR due diligence. Get the format right and the rest of the case file has something to stand on.
4 min readCollecting plot data from cooperatives and smallholders under the EUDR
You can collect geolocation through cooperatives, exporters or certifiers. The accuracy stays your responsibility, so the collection method has to leave a trail you can defend.
6 min readHow Sylva screens a plot for deforestation
What the screening looks at, how it decides, and where a human takes over. Transparent by design, because an auditor will ask.
5 min readThe Article 10 risk assessment: from fourteen factors to a documented determination
The risk assessment is where the collected information becomes a decision. The regulation names fourteen things to weigh; the output is one word.
5 min readThe due-diligence statement and the EU Information System
The due-diligence statement is the artefact the whole workflow produces. Here is what it is and where it goes.
4 min readEUDR record-keeping: five years of records, an annual review, and a public report
Filing the statement is not the end. Three standing duties decide whether your due diligence holds up the day an authority asks.
5 min read
Roles, countries and the system
Operator or trader? The roaster question and the HS-code rule
Your role under the EUDR sets your obligations. For coffee, the deciding factor is often whether processing changes the HS code.
4 min readThe MSPO route: one simplified declaration instead of a DDS per batch
The 2025 reform created a lighter path for the smallest producers selling directly into the EU. Here is who qualifies and what actually changes.
5 min readCountry benchmarking: low, standard and high risk
The risk class of the country of production decides how much due diligence applies, and whether you can use the simplified route.
4 min readThe EUDR Information System relaunch: what changes from June 2026
The system every due-diligence statement goes through is being relaunched months before the December 2026 application date. What is in it, and what to do while it rolls out.
4 min read
Beyond the EUDR
Certifications under the EUDR: what a scheme can do for you, and what it cannot
A valid certificate is useful evidence. It is not compliance. The difference decides how you should record and weigh it.
5 min readEUDR due diligence in the wider landscape: OECD, CSDDD and the Forced Labour Regulation
One due-diligence system, several laws. Where the EUDR sits in the family, and what carries over.
4 min read
Choosing a system
Choosing EUDR compliance software as a coffee company
The market runs from free checkers to enterprise suites. The regulation decides what the system must do; this guide turns that into questions you can put to any vendor.
6 min readEUDR for norske kaffeselskaper: roller, frister og EØS-status
Avskogingsforordningen treffer norske kaffeselskaper på to veier: direkte i det varene berører EU-markedet, og gjennom EØS-innlemmelsen som er besluttet men ennå ikke formelt vedtatt.
5 min read
Quick answers
- Does the EUDR apply to coffee?
- Yes. Coffee is one of the seven commodities in scope of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115, alongside cattle, cocoa, oil palm, rubber, soya and wood.
- What is the EUDR cutoff date?
- 31 December 2020. Coffee must be produced on land not subject to deforestation after that date.
- When does the EUDR start to apply?
- From 30 December 2026 for large and medium operators, and from 30 June 2027 for micro and small operators. Size is fixed by status on 31 December 2024.
- Is tree-cover loss the same as deforestation?
- No. Tree-cover-loss signals over a coffee plot are common and are not automatically deforestation; they must be reviewed against the parcel boundary and pre-2020 land use.
- What is an MSPO under the EUDR?
- A micro or small primary operator: a natural person or a micro or small undertaking, established in a low-risk country, placing products it produced itself directly on the EU market. An MSPO files a one-time simplified declaration instead of a due-diligence statement per batch (Art. 4a).
- When does the EUDR Information System reopen?
- The renewed Information System relaunches in June 2026, with additional functionality arriving through the summer ahead of the 30 December 2026 application date.
- Does a certification like Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade make coffee EUDR compliant?
- No. Certification is complementary information the operator may weigh in the Article 10 risk assessment (factor n). The operator's own due diligence and responsibility remain in full.
- Is instant coffee covered by the EUDR?
- Not currently. Soluble coffee (HS 2101) is outside Annex I today; a draft Delegated Regulation from May 2026 proposes adding it, but until adoption the current Annex I applies.
Sylva is compliance software, not legal advice. These guides summarise the regulation for orientation; verify obligations against the consolidated EUDR text on EUR-Lex.