Even after Brexit, UK coffee importers & roasters still need to be prepared for EUDR

As the European Union Deforestation Regulation deadline quickly approaches, producers, traders, and roasters who operate in the EU coffee market have started to demonstrate their compliance with the new legislation. As of December 2024, medium and large-sized companies which import coffee (and other commodities) into the EU must prove their supply chains are deforestation free. Smaller companies, meanwhile, must comply by June 2025.

Given that the EUDR applies to the sale of goods in the European Union market, there tends to be a primary focus on how the law will affect European roasters and traders specifically, as well as producers in origin countries. 

The impact of EUDR, however, is global. Even post-Brexit, this includes the United Kingdom. If UK roasters and importers want to sell their coffee in the European market, they will have to comply with new standards.

Priscilla Daniel, senior coffee trader at DRWakefield, provides her insight on how the EU deforestation regulations will reshape the UK coffee market.

You may also like our article on why the coffee industry keeps calling for EUDR delays.

Why EUDR is a global issue for the coffee industry

Deforestation is a significant problem in global agriculture. According to a 2022 United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation study, between 1990 and 2020, approximately 420 million hectares of forest was converted into agricultural land – including for coffee. The same research also found that imports to the European Union market accounted for up to 11% of global deforestation during this period.

To directly address this, in June 2023, the European Parliament and European Council announced the Regulation on Deforestation-Free Products (or EUDR) which prohibits European companies – including coffee traders and roasters – from importing commodities from supply chains that include deforestation.

It’s an understatement to say that the impact of this on the coffee industry is immense, with most supply chain actors affected. Non-compliance means facing fines of up to 4% of annual turnover, potential confiscation of shipments, and losing out on a market that accounts for over a third of global coffee consumption. For many producers, traders, and roasters, these implications would be catastrophic for their business.

Proving supply chains are deforestation free and complying with the relevant legislation of the country of production, however, is costly and time consuming. New regulations require companies to geolocate farms or land where coffee grows, which requires access to satellite technology and data verification systems. 

Understandably, this has resulted in pushback from many people in the industry. Among the calls to delay the legislation is the growing concern that producers (particularly smallholders) don’t have enough support and access to resources to prove compliance. Moreover, the EUDR doesn’t necessarily consider certain conditions in origin countries, such as informal land inheritance, which then makes it next to impossible to generate verifiable data.

Post-Brexit, the UK also has to comply

Given the global implications of the EUDR, even after Brexit, the UK coffee industry will have to adapt to the new legislation.

Following a divisive referendum on 23 June 2016, the UK voted to leave the European Union. The EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement was signed on 30 December 2020, which provides free trade of goods and limited mutual market access, as well as scope for cooperation in a range of policy areas. The new agreement, however, does not offer free movement of people between the UK and EU countries and retracts the UK’s membership in the European Single Market and Customs Union.

In line with this, it may seem that UK traders and roasters don’t have to comply with the EUDR, as UK companies are no longer importing goods into the EU market. But if UK coffee businesses still want to sell their products to European Union countries, compliance is an absolute necessity.

So what do UK coffee roasters and importers need to know about EUDR?

There has been plenty of discussion about compliance with the EUDR, and much uncertainty remains. However, if UK roasters and traders don’t want to face fines and logistical hurdles selling in this market then ensuring their shipments are deforestation-free is vital.

Priscilla Daniel is a senior coffee trader at DRWakefield. Established in 1970, the green coffee trader operates warehouses in both the UK and EU.

“The operator who places the product on the EU market – whether it’s green or roasted – is responsible for EUDR compliance,” she explains. “This includes B2B and B2C sales, which may mean meeting different deadlines.

“For example, if a UK roaster sells coffee to a European supermarket chain, this is classified as a medium or large-sized company,” she adds. “The roaster would then need to make sure they prove compliance by 30 December 2024, as opposed to June 2025.”

Priscilla explains that any company which sells in the EU market must record their deforestation-free coffee using the EUDR information portal, which doesn’t verify shipments, but allows operators to provide their due diligence statements. While the system isn’t new (and has been used to prove compliance with organic standards for some time), its use for the EUDR is.

“The EUDR information portal its in its pilot phase,” Priscilla tells me. “The EU is due to release a second pilot in October, with the estimated live date in the middle of December 2024.“

But the potential for confusion is high

For EU roasters and importers, fully transitioning to EUDR compliance is going to be challenging, but these companies will have to operate under one new system – which arguably makes operations more streamlined.

On the other hand, UK and international coffee businesses face two options: develop separate systems for EU and non-EU markets or ensure all coffees are deforestation-free.

“The EUDR is ultimately a mandatory goal that needs to be achieved by companies operating in the EU market if they want to continue selling their goods, but there’s a gap in compliance,” Priscilla says. “Roasters and importers outside of the EU will have to develop a separate system if they want to sell in this market to avoid paying fines.

“But this then increases the risk of shipping non-compliant coffee to the EU,” she adds. “So UK importers and roasters have to ask themselves whether they should transition all of their coffee to comply with new legislation to minimise confusion.”

This obviously comes at a significant cost to companies, but Priscilla points out that the benefits of compliance far outweigh losing access to the world’s biggest coffee market. To ensure UK roasters and importers meet all strict standards, Priscilla recommends to partner with a verification body.

“We work with Enveritas, who carry out due diligence checks and ensure coffee shipments are compliant with the EUDR legislation,” she tells me.

The implications of EUDR are not restricted to European roasters and importers. UK companies who sell their coffee in the EU will also have to comply – and the same goes for any global brand who operates in this market.

Ultimately, despite criticism of its implementation, the overall aim of the EUDR is to improve ESG practices in the global coffee market, as well as traceability and transparency. And we can all agree that this is a goal worth achieving – but collaboration between producers, traders, roasters, and governing bodies is essential.

Enjoyed this? Then read our article on how roasters can successfully comply with EUDR.

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