Ecuador is a culturally rich and biodiverse country, with native forests covering 51.2% of its territory—74% of which lies in the Amazon region. Despite this wealth, it has lost approximately 954,000 hectares of tree cover between 2002 and 2022, with agriculture identified as the primary driver of deforestation. Initiatives such as the Sustainable Agriculture for Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project in collaboration with public and private stakeholders are empowering smallholder farmers to achieve compliance with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), improve traceability, and access global markets.
Challenges and Opportunities of the EUDR
The EUDR presents a promising opportunity to integrate sustainability within Ecuador’s agricultural sector. However, compliance poses challenges, particularly for smallholder farmers who comprise most of the sector. These farmers must adapt their practices to meet EUDR requirements by 2026 to maintain access to the European Union, their primary export market.
Since 2022, the SAFE project works to strengthen producer organizations, provide training, promote gender inclusion and equity, and invest in cooperative infrastructure to improve market access. SAFE Ecuador supports smallholder farmers of the cocoa, coffee, and palm oil production, with a special focus on women and indigenous communities. It also collaborates closely with Ecuadorian government agencies—including the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, the Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition, and the Ministry of Production, Foreign Trade, Investment, and Fisheries—as well as actors from the private sector and local communities.
Building Farmer Confidence and Capacity
SAFE´s efforts include organizing training programs for farmers and producers to encourage and support smallholders to produce in a low-risk manner. Initially, many local farmers were skeptical of SAFE´s programs and the benefits of being compliant with the EUDR.
I was afraid of participating with SAFE, I didn’t understand what the new EU regulation meant. However, today I am really happy with their support and training to help produce better cacao, with more quality. We are motivated not to deforest the mountain anymore.
Over time, however, he, like many others, came to appreciate the directive’s value and the support provided by initiatives like SAFE, which aim to ensure readiness for the European market. Farmers now share a common goal: growing high-quality, traceable products to meet international demands.
The programs of GIZ are excellent. They enable us, as producers and collection centers, to better organize commercialization, invoicing, and economic traceability. As organizations, we should already be preparing for the future.
Regional Collaboration: Diálogos de Cacao Sostenible
At an institutional level, SAFE supports national and regional roundtables on sustainable production. In October 2024, Ecuador was host to the event Diálogos de Cacao Sostenible (in English “Sustainable Cacao Dialogues”). Representatives from different countries of the region, such as Colombia, Brazil and Peru, attended the three-day event that was held in Quito and Tena.
This event provided a platform for stakeholders to exchange solutions to the challenges posed by the EUDR. Producers’ associations, communities, and public and private actors came together to share knowledge and experiences, developing strategies and tools to address issues such as associativity, traceability, and risk management in the cocoa production chain.
Moving Forward
Ecuador’s transition to sustainable and deforestation-free value chains requires continued collaboration, innovation, and investment. By aligning efforts across the public and private sectors and engaging smallholder farmers, the country is laying the groundwork for a sustainable future. The SAFE project demonstrates that with the right support, Ecuador can not only meet the EUDR’s requirements but also strengthen its position as a leading producer of sustainable agricultural products in Latin America.
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