Agri-Food Deforestation and Conversion Free (DCF) Sourcing FAQs

The Agri-Food DCF Sourcing Criteria establish a framework for certifying agri-food entities that source commodities from land not subject to deforestation or natural ecosystem conversion after December 31, 2020. The criteria apply to supply chain actors—such as traders, processors, and retailers—generating at least 50% of their revenue from agri-food supply chains. Compliance requires that 90% of an entity's net procurement spend be compliant, with individual commodities accounting for 1% or more of spend included in the scope. Traceability requirements vary by risk: high-risk countries and specific commodities (cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, pulp and paper, and soy) require geolocation to the original production land plot, while low-risk origins may only require country-of-origin tracing until January 1, 2030. Mass-balance chains of custody are prohibited. Certification is valid for five years, subject to annual verifications by approved verifiers who sample at least 10% of procured volume and suppliers.

• The Agri-Food DCF Sourcing Criteria mandate that certified entities source agri-food commodities from land that has not undergone deforestation or conversion of natural ecosystems after a specific cut-off date of 31 December 2020.
• Entity certification is available to supply chain actors, including traders, processors, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, provided that at least 50% of their revenue is generated from agri-food commodity supply chains.
• To achieve certification, an entity must meet a 'Certification Threshold' where compliant activities represent at least 90% of its total agri-food net procurement spend; any individual commodity representing 1% or more of that spend must be included in the compliance assessment.
• Traceability requirements are tiered based on risk: commodities from high-risk countries, as well as cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, pulp and paper, and soy regardless of origin, must be traceable to the geolocation of the original production land plot. For other commodities from low-risk countries, tracing to the country of origin or primary processing facility is sufficient until 1 January 2030.
• The criteria strictly prohibit the use of mass-balance supply chain models, requiring instead that all traceable DCF agri-food commodities be segregated from non-DCF or unknown-origin commodities at every stage of the supply chain.
• Country risk categorization is determined using Global Forest Watch data; a country is classified as high-risk if the ratio of total natural forest land lost between 2018 and 2022 relative to the total natural forest cover in 2000 is higher than 1%.
• Annual verification is required to maintain certification, which is valid for five years. Verifiers must check a random sample of at least 10% of the procured volume and 10% of the total number of suppliers, with a minimum of 25% of samples dedicated to livestock supply chains for entities dealing in livestock.

APA

Climate Bonds Initiative (2024). Agri-Food Deforestation and Conversion Free (DCF) Sourcing FAQs. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/faqs-agri-food-dcf-220424.pdf

Chicago

Climate Bonds Initiative. Agri-Food Deforestation and Conversion Free (DCF) Sourcing FAQs. 2024. https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/faqs-agri-food-dcf-220424.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Climate Bonds Initiative |title=Agri-Food Deforestation and Conversion Free (DCF) Sourcing FAQs |date=11 March 2024 |url=https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/faqs-agri-food-dcf-220424.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{climatebondsinitiative2024agrifood, author = {{Climate Bonds Initiative}}, title = {{Agri-Food Deforestation and Conversion Free (DCF) Sourcing FAQs}}, institution = {Climate Bonds Initiative}, year = {2024}, month = mar, url = {https://www.climatebonds.net/files/drupal-files/files/faqs-agri-food-dcf-220424.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }