At the Rainforest Alliance, we’ve been tackling deforestation for nearly 40 years—and since January 2024, we’ve supported farm and supply chain partners in aligning with the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) through our certification program. Already, around 50 percent of Certificate Holders in the coffee and cocoa sectors have opted in to our additional EUDR-aligned requirements, marking a significant step on their journey towards EUDR compliance and future EU market access.
After more than a year of hands-on experience working with Certificate Holders on EUDR alignment, we’re upgrading our approach based on what we’ve learned. As part of this update, we’ll publish a revised Alignment with the EUDR Policy and introduce a new EUDR Data Sharing Policy, applicable to both coffee and cocoa farm Certificate Holders. These policies will become binding on June 16.
Learn more about what’s changing.
What’s shifting: from opt-in to integrated assessments
From June 16, when the new policies become binding, we will move from self-selected to integrated assessments against EUDR-aligned requirements across our certification program for coffee and cocoa farms. This means that all current and future coffee and cocoa farm certificate holders will be audited against these EUDR-aligned requirements. While this shift adds greater rigor, it builds on the foundation of our 2020 Certification Program, which already required Certificate Holders to collect farm-level geolocation data over three audit cycles.
Importantly, while the assessment against EUDR-aligned requirements is now an integral part of the requirements for all coffee and cocoa Certificate Holders, non-compliance with those specific requirements will not lead to decertification. Farm Certificate Holders will also be able to decide whether they want to share data as defined in our data sharing policy – see below for further details on the opt-out process.
This approach allows us to continue preparing farmers for future markets, while giving companies easier access to traceable, EUDR-aligned coffee and cocoa. By integrating EUDR-aligned requirements into our certification scope, we are ensuring a process that’s both clearer and more streamlined for farms wanting to meet the EUDR-aligned requirements. At the same time, it helps us better understand the bottlenecks for those who do not meet them.
And with EUDR enforcement postponed until December 30, 2025, we have valuable time to scale up our support and make sure farmers and companies are fully prepared.
What this update means for farm Certificate Holders
From the binding date of the Alignment with the EUDR Policy onwards, if you are preparing for an audit and have not yet confirmed your scope, the EUDR-aligned requirements will automatically be added in the Rainforest Alliance Certification Platform (RACP) when you confirm or update your scope. This means you will be audited against EUDR-aligned requirements during your next audit. We advise you to prepare for these and provide geolocation data according to the EUDR-aligned requirements. To support you, we will release an updated EUDR e-course where you can learn more about what EUDR means for our Certificate Holders. You will still be able to get certified for the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard even if you do not meet the EUDR-aligned requirements.
What this update means for supply chain Certificate Holders
Since the additional EUDR-aligned requirements only apply to farm Certificate Holders, companies are not directly affected by this update. However, in order to access EUDR-relevant information for (mixed) Identity Preserved coffee and/or cocoa supply chains, companies will still need to “opt in,” i.e., accept our EUDR data sharing terms on the RACP.
FAQs
Certification and audit impacts
Why didn’t the Rainforest Alliance add the EUDR-aligned requirements directly into Version 1.4 of the Sustainable Agriculture Standard?
The Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard applies to a wide variety of crops, not all of which fall under the EUDR’s scope. To avoid unnecessary complexity for farmers outside the EUDR’s reach, we chose to cover EUDR alignment in a separate, binding policy document for cocoa and coffee farm Certificate Holders.
What happens if I can’t meet the EUDR-aligned requirements (e.g., uploading all of the required polygons)?
EUDR-aligned requirements are separate from other certification requirements and do not impact your certification decision. If you meet the requirements of the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard, you can still be certified, even if you can’t yet meet the EUDR-aligned requirements. You will have six weeks to close any non-conformities and will be assessed against the EUDR-aligned requirements again during your next Rainforest Alliance audit. However, please note that you will not be added to the public list of EUDR-aligned Certificate Holders and your geolocation data and alignment evidence will not be shared with companies until you pass the EUDR-aligned requirements.
If non-conformities on the EUDR-aligned requirements are not closed, they will not impact your ability to be certified against the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard.
Are polygons required for all farm units?
No. According to our EUDR alignment policy (requirement EUDR1), polygons are required for cocoa and coffee farm units of four hectares and above. Certificate Holders are still required to comply with the Rainforest Alliance Standard requirements on geolocation data (i.e., 1.2.10 and 1.2.11).
Data sharing
Can I choose not to share my data? What process do I need to follow?
Yes. While EUDR-aligned requirements are mandatory for cocoa and coffee farm Certificate Holders, non-compliance will not impact certification, and the Rainforest Alliance will not share data from Certificate Holders who are unable to comply. We also recognize that even when Certificate Holders comply with the EUDR-aligned requirements, they may wish for this data to not be shared with their direct or indirect buyers. Certificate Holders who prefer not to share their data should contact customersuccess@ra.org using an email address associated with the relevant Certificate Holder, providing the correct Rainforest Alliance ID and Certificate Holder name. Certificate Holders may contact Rainforest Alliance to limit such sharing at any time, but those that wish to avoid sharing of their data for a given audit should contact Customer Success before their Certification Body submits the license request to ensure that EUDR-aligned data obtained in such audit is not made public. If the Certificate Holder chooses to restrict or withdraw their data, Rainforest Alliance will take all reasonable steps to restrict and/or remove their data without undue delay.
Visibility for companies on status of farm EUDR alignment
How can companies see which farm Certificate Holders are EUDR-aligned?
There are several ways in which companies can check if farm Certificate Holders are EUDR-aligned:
Search the public list of EUDR-aligned Certificate Holders.
Use their tailored EUDR Due Diligence Report in Power BI for (mixed) Identity Preserved coffee and/or cocoa supply chains.
Contact their suppliers directly to confirm the EUDR-alignment status of specific farm Certificate Holders.
How can companies tell if a farm Certificate Holder has not passed EUDR-aligned requirements?
In this case, the Certificate Holder will not appear on the list of EUDR-aligned Certificate Holders. Companies can also check their tailored EUDR Due Diligence Report in Power BI, which includes all farm Certificate Holders in their (mixed) Identity Preserved supply chains and each one’s EUDR-alignment status.
Confirmation of scope in RACP
What if I confirmed my scope in the RACP before the integrated EUDR approach was released? How can I add the EUDR-aligned requirements?
If you confirmed your certification scope in the RACP before the update, the “Reconfirm” button won’t appear automatically. To make the EUDR-aligned requirements appear in your overview, follow these steps:
From the “Certification Overview” page, click the “Farm” button, then click “Edit” for any mapped farm in your scope. You will be brought to the “Farm Details” page.
Without making any changes, click “Save.”
Close the window (top-right icon), navigate back to the Certification Overview, and the “Reconfirm” button will now be visible.
Reconfirm your scope to make the EUDR-aligned requirements appear. All farm coffee and cocoa Certificate Holders should now be able to see EUDR requirements.
Step-by-step instructions with screenshots can also be found in the RACP Farm User Manual from June 16.