CGIAR Seminar Series | Series/Special Event
The EU Deforestation Regulation: Policy Implications and Research Frontiers
Co-organized by IFPRI, CGIAR, and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)
October 14, 2025

In June 2023, the European Union (EU) adopted its Regulation on Deforestation-Free Products (EUDR)—a landmark policy designed to reduce global deforestation and forest degradation driven by EU consumption. Under the regulation, key commodities with the biggest impacts on deforestation—soy, cattle, palm oil, cocoa, coffee, wood, and natural rubber—cannot be placed on the EU market or exported unless they are free of deforestation and legally produced.

The EUDR was scheduled for entry into force in December 2025 and in June 2026 for small and micro enterprises, but a one-year delay was proposed by the European Commission on 23 September, due to capacity concerns with the IT system set up for due diligence reporting by businesses.

Join us for this virtual event convening policymakers, development practitioners, researchers, and industry representatives to examine how the EUDR is likely to reshape trade dynamics, sustainability standards, and development priorities across the globe.

As countries and companies prepare for EUDR implementation, this seminar will examine how they can seize upon opportunities and mitigate risks associated with it. Leading voices from government, research, industry, and civil society will discuss how to ensure equitable and inclusive production aligned with EUDR requirements across diverse production systems, and how to address knowledge and technology gaps to support data-driven, smallholder-friendly solutions.

Moderator Welcome Remarks

Charlotte Hebebrand, Director of Communications & Public Affairs, IFPRI

Session 1
Rationale and Scope of the EUDR: Lisa Kirfel-Rühle, Deputy Head of Division 122 Agriculture, Rural Development, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) 
Global Deforestation Trends & Outlook, and Key Considerations Arising from EUDR Implementation: Beria Leimona, Theme Leader, Climate Change, Energy and Low-Carbon Development, The Center for International Forestry Research and World Agroforestry (CIFOR-ICRAF)
International Cooperation Framework: Simon Gmeiner, Policy Officer, European Commission  

Session 2
Engaging on the EUDR: H.E. Andri Hadi, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to the Kingdom of Belgium, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, and the European Union
Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil Certification: Mohd Hasbollah Suparyono, Chief Operating Officer, Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO)
Considerations for Mercosur Countries: Valeria Piñeiro, Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), IFPRI
China’s Efforts to Source Zero Deforestation Soybeans from Brazil: Kevin Chen, Senior Research Fellow, IFPRI

Session 3
Inclusive Pathways for Smallholders in Deforestation-Free Supply Chains: Izzana Salleh, Secretary General, Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC)
EUDR implications for coffee and cocoa smallholders in Africa: Vanessa Adams, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Level4International
Identification of Production Origin and Public Verification for Deforestation – Free Agricultural Supply Chains in Colombia: Sandra Durango, Postdoctoral Fellow, Alliance Bioversity and CIAT

More about this Event: https://www.ifpri.org/event/the-eu-deforestation-regulation-policy-implications-and-research-frontiers/

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The EU Deforestation Regulation: Policy Implications and Research Frontiers

Introductory Remarks by Geraldo B. Martha Jr., Coordinator, Embrapa, Labex-USA
 
Successful agricultural transformations around the world provide critical lessons and offer insights into opportunities for other countries seeking to take this step forward.

 
At this special event, we will learn about Brazil’s agricultural transformation from Embrapa’s President, Maurício Lopes. IFPRI Director General Shenggen Fan will share insights from Asian countries, ERS Administrator Mary Bohman will review the experience of the United States, and Asia-Brazil Agro Alliance President Marcos Jank will discuss the role of the food industry in agricultural transformation.

IFPRI Special Event:  Transforming Agriculture - 5/15/2018 - GMartha

Speaker: Marcos Sawaya Jank, President, Asia-Brazil Agro Alliance and IFPRI Board member
 
Successful agricultural transformations around the world provide critical lessons and offer insights into opportunities for other countries seeking to take this step forward.
 
At this special event, we will learn about Brazil’s agricultural transformation from Embrapa’s President, Maurício Lopes. IFPRI Director General Shenggen Fan will share insights from Asian countries, ERS Administrator Mary Bohman will review the experience of the United States, and Asia-Brazil Agro Alliance President Marcos Jank will discuss the role of the food industry in agricultural transformation.

IFPRI Special Event:  Transforming Agriculture - 5/15/2018  - M.Jank

What happens when a child is malnourished? Can such a child ever “catch up” later in life? Why does urbanization and obesity seem to go hand in hand—and what does this mean for food production? We’ll explore big picture food system questions today on the Leading Voices in Food with our guest Dr. Shenggen Fan.

The Leading Voices in Food

Shenggen Fan on Hunger, Climate Change and the Hope of Innovation

Speaker: William A. Masters, Professor, Tufts University

Interventions and innovation can lower the price of individual foods, but healthy eating depends on access to a mix of foods from diverse sources. How has the overall cost of meeting dietary needs changed over time worldwide, and in Africa and South Asia specifically? What determines the cost of a healthy diet? And how does affordability affect dietary intake and health status in different locales?

To answer these questions, Changing Access to Nutritious Diets in Africa and South Asia (CANDASA) (https://sites.tufts.edu/candasa) has been using new food price indexes that account for food substitutions to meet nutritional needs to evaluate food systems all over the world, including in Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Malawi, and Tanzania.

This seminar will present the outcomes of CANDASA’s work to date, with a panel discussion featuring field researchers from each country to discuss the local and global implications of their results.

Research by Tufts and IFPRI on this topic is supported by UKAid and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

IFPRI Policy Seminar:  What is the Cost of a Healthy Diet? - 5/29/2019 - WMasters

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. Established in 1975, IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. It is a research center of CGIAR, a worldwide partnership engaged in agricultural research for development.

The EU Deforestation Regulation: Policy Implications and Research Frontiers

International Food Policy Research Institute

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