EU Regulation EUDAR of 2025 Promoting Sustainable Development through Forest-Friendly Products: Its Impact on Strengthening Trade in South America
In a groundbreaking move, a regional initiative called "Compliance with EU regulations with landscape impact" has been launched in Argentina, Colombia, Paraguay, and Peru. The project aims to facilitate compatibility with the EUDR (Regulation 2023/1115 on Deforestation-Free Products) by 2030, positioning South America as a leader in sustainable agricultural practices.
The focus of this project is on the Amazon and Chaco regions, with the objective of strengthening collective mechanisms within productive chains and at the landscape level. This move is expected to favor greater access to markets for all producers, thereby promoting social inclusion and environmental resilience.
The preparatory phase of the project has enriched the design of the diagnostic phase, identifying needs, bottlenecks, challenges, and strengths of each territory. Workshops organized in each country analyzed potential intervention zones, actors involved (with a gender focus), ongoing projects, relevant legislation, monitoring platforms, traceability mechanisms, ecosystem restoration, and financing mechanisms.
The project is divided into three work components: Supply chains and markets, Incentives and landscape management actions, and Learning and scaling, all aligned with its main impact. The initiative emphasizes inter-institutional and cross-country collaboration in addressing sustainable development challenges.
In Colombia, the initiative coincides with a key political recognition of peasantry and offers opportunities to strengthen capacities and apply the European regulation. It also presents a path for peace-building and addressing historical debts regarding the agricultural frontier.
The project is being led by a consortium, with IUCN SUR as the lead, in collaboration with several other organizations. Edder Ortiz, Coordinator of Systems & Landscape Ecology at Guyra Paraguay, stated that the initiative occurs in a context where both the public and private sectors are advancing in the implementation of traceability systems, and organizations can play a key role in supporting the development of solid systems.
Missions were conducted in June, involving national government representatives, local governments, supply chain actors, and consortium members, to gather inputs, identify priorities, and find potential beneficiaries and allies.
The goal of this project is to consolidate more responsible, socially inclusive, and environmentally resilient production, positioning South America in international markets with high environmental value. Strategies for maintaining agricultural production in South America while ensuring sustainable economic development and compliance with EU deforestation-free product regulations hinge on integrating advanced technology, sustainable farming practices, traceability systems, and multi-level governance support.
Key strategies include adopting regenerative and organic agriculture, increasing transparency and traceability using technology, strengthening governance and multi-sector coordination, innovative financial mechanisms and policy support, and building a new agricultural narrative supported by science and innovation.
The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUKN) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The implementation of this project is expected to conclude in October 2025 with the development of the final proposal, which will define the theory of change, objectives, and planned activities for the project's implementation, scheduled to begin in 2026.
In Argentina, Sebastián Fermani, director of conservation at Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina, stated the initiative allows for meetings with various actors in the Chaco region to identify synergies, needs, opinions, and difficulties. The project represents an opportunity for sustainability and competitiveness, redefining global trade.
- This regional initiative, termed "Compliance with EU regulations with landscape impact," is focused on strengthening South America's leadership in sustainable agricultural practices, particularly in the Amazon and Chaco regions.
- The project aims to facilitate compatibility with the EUDR (Regulation 2023/1115 on Deforestation-Free Products) by 2030, positioning South America as a leader in climate-change awareness and renewable-energy adoption within the agricultural industry.
- The project is comprised of three main components: Supply chains and markets, Incentives and landscape management actions, and Learning and scaling, all of which align with social inclusion, environmental resilience, and business sustainability.
- In the housing-market and real-estate sector, the project's focus on sustainable agricultural practices may lead to increased demand for energy-efficient buildings and environmentally-friendly construction materials.
- The project's funding comes from the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUKN) through the International Climate Initiative (IKI), emphasizing the importance of financing and investment in environmental-science and sustainable-energy solutions.
- The initiative's key strategies for achieving its objectives involve adopting regenerative and organic agriculture, implementing advance technology and traceability systems, strengthening governance and multi-sector coordination, and promoting a new agricultural narrative supported by science and innovation.
