Having participated in 39 events in South America since July last year, Solidaridad and its partners promote an open dialogue and mobilise the sector towards compliance with the European Union’s new anti-deforestation regulation.
With the aim of bringing together different stakeholders from the soya bean and livestock production chains to hold discussions on a fair and inclusive transition in compliance with the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), Solidaridad and its partners, in particular Proforest and the Tropical Forest Alliance, have mobilised more than 1,000 Brazilian and South American stakeholders. Based on the Inclusive Regional Dialogues on the EUDR initiative, within the scope of the Sustainable Agriculture for Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project, it has engaged participants in 39 events starting July last year. During these meetings, it promoted the exchange of experiences and took part in debates not only in Brazil, but also in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
With the aim of bringing together different stakeholders from the soya bean and livestock production chains to hold discussions on a fair and inclusive transition in compliance with the European Union's Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the Solidaridad Foundation and its partners, in particular Proforest and the Tropical Forest Alliance, have mobilised more than 1,000 Brazilian and South American stakeholders. Based on the Inclusive Regional Dialogues on the EUDR initiative, within the scope of the Sustainable Agriculture for Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) project, it has engaged participants in 39 events starting July last year. During these meetings, it promoted the exchange of experiences and took part in debates not only in Brazil, but also in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
In May this year, Solidaridad hosted the meeting «Mercosur-EU soya bean dialogue: strengthening a strategic value chain» in the cities of Buenos Aires and Rosario, Argentina. On this occasion, representatives of governments, the private sector, international organisations, producers and civil society from all four countries met to discuss the challenges and opportunities that the EUDR presents to the soya bean industry. The event was organised in partnership with AL-INVEST Verde, the Zero Deforestation project and the Argentine-German Dialogue on Sustainable Agricultural Innovations (DAAIAS).
"The EUDR is a common goal for the good of the planet, the industry and the consumers. Over the years, the Mercosur countries and the EU have established a very efficient way to trade soya beans – which is an important feedstock for livestock farming in Europe – based on long-standing relationships of trust, as well as guarantees of quality and health. Events like these allow for direct exchanges between stakeholders to consolidate foundations and strengthen sustainability, resilience and a flexible coordination between operators in both regions,"
The end of the activities included systematisation workshops that made it possible to agree on a series of technical and political recommendations to advance cooperation between countries. Among the proposals was the need to strengthen traceability systems, expand regional technical assistance, promote financing schemes for the transition, and develop innovative and adaptable regulatory structures. The importance of ensuring the inclusion of small producers and promoting regional coordination to facilitate access to technological tools and global markets was also highlighted. In total, Solidaridad and its partners have organised or participated in seven events in Argentina.
In February and March, three meetings were held on the beef chain in Uruguay in order to update local stakeholders on the scope of the new EU regulations, the commitments made by the country and the opportunities to strengthen the position of Uruguayan agriculture as a global sustainability leader. The events took place in the cities of Punta del Este, Durazno and Soriano and were attended by 180 participants, including agricultural producers, exporters, agricultural associations, civil society organisations linked to agriculture, government authorities and technicians, academics and media representatives.
In October last year, the first of five regional dialogues promoted by the project took place. The meeting took place during the Global Roundtable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB) in Punta del Este. The event brought together around 50 people, including representatives of the livestock chain from Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, production unions, local governments and delegates from the European Union, as well as processing companies, exporters and service providers. The Tropical Forest Alliance and Proforest helped organise the activity. In neighbouring Paraguay, nine meetings were organised or attended.
SUSTAINABLE LIVESTOCK
In Brazil, Solidaridad organised or took part in discussions at 15 events. Between October and December, it held three meetings in partnership with the Brazilian Sustainable Livestock Roundtable (MBPS). The first of these meetings, Inclusive Dialogue – Challenges for the Livestock Value Chain to Meet the EUDR, took place online and innovative solutions were discussed to allow the chain to structure itself to meet the requirements of the regulation. The second online meeting, Inclusive Dialogue – Opportunities and Solutions for Producers to Meet the EUDR, addressed proposals to place Brazilian livestock farming in a prominent position not only in Europe, but throughout the world.
The most recent event took place in person during the Sustainable Livestock Forum 2024, focusing on the prospects and compliance of Brazilian livestock agriculture with the EUDR. The aim was to exchange experiences between key players in the sector. «We are living through a global climate crisis, a humanitarian crisis, and we need to improve our environmental performance. If we fight this, commercial relationships could be damaged. Brazil might be the livestock producing country with the greatest environmental asset in the world, and this needs to be translated into value,» said Imaflora’s Public Policy Manager, Marina Guyot.
EUDR stands for European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). This is a new regulation that aims to fight global deforestation by banning EU’s import of agricultural products that are linked to deforestation worldwide. The regulation is scheduled to come into force on 30 December 2025 for large companies and on 30 June 2026 for micro and small-sized enterprises.
SAFE and the Team Europe Initiative on Deforestation-free Value Chains
All the events took place as part of the SAFE Project, which is part of the Team Europe Initiative (TEI) on Deforestation-Free Value Chains. This is a joint effort by the European Union (EU) and its Member States, created to support global ambitions to decouple agricultural production from deforestation, in partnership with various stakeholders in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The common goal is to highlight solutions, facilitate dialogue and promote knowledge and coordination in order to co-create effective measures that can drive a fair transition towards legal, deforestation-free agricultural production chains. The initiative is mainly funded by the EU, Germany, the Netherlands and France, as well as other EU Member States.
