The economics matter most for small producers outside Europe
Currently, the high relative costs of organizing compliance for smallholders risk driving buyers toward large farms, excluding the very producers we need to support. Policymakers and corporations must urgently address these economics to prevent compliance costs from eating into farmers’ incomes and avoid the risk of exclusion from the EU market. With the impacts of climate change incumbent, we need to stand in solidarity with farmers supplying our coffee, cocoa and palm oil and ensure they are rewarded for their efforts and earn a living income to sustain the value chains that Europe depends on.
Advocating small farmer interests and inclusiveness
Solidaridad remains committed to working with farmers and businesses to deliver compliance and monitor the real-world impacts of implementation. We advocate to ensure farmers are rewarded for their compliance and environmental performance, rather than excluded or disproportionately penalized. We call on companies and governments to hear farmer voices and take their interests into account. This can be done by investments in projects that support EUDR compliance locally and strengthening sourcing policies to buy from smallholder farmers. In the end we need a policy environment that rewards smallholders for investing in sustainable practices, transparency and traceability.