Supporting EUDR Compliance Through Regional Sustainability Standards

The report assesses the alignment of ARSO's regional agriculture and forestry standards with the EUDR. While ARSO demonstrates strong institutional governance and a solid baseline for legal compliance, it lacks critical technical requirements for EUDR readiness, specifically regarding the December 31, 2020 cut-off date, plot-level geolocation, and structured ex ante risk assessments. The author recommends that ARSO adopt EUDR-aligned definitions of deforestation, mandate polygon-level mapping for plots over 4 hectares, and increase transparency regarding audit outcomes to help African producers maintain market access to the EU.

• ARSO standards provide strong support for risk mitigation through conformity assessments and third-party audits, but they lack a structured, ex ante risk assessment framework that aligns with the full set of criteria in EUDR Article 10(2).
• Both the agriculture and forestry standards provide a solid baseline for legal compliance with national laws, though they do not explicitly cover all legal categories required by EUDR Article 2(40), such as anti-corruption, tax, trade, and customs laws.
• Alignment with EUDR's deforestation-free requirements is weak; neither standard adopts the December 31, 2020 cut-off date without exceptions, and the forestry standard's allowance for up to 5% forest conversion is incompatible with the regulation.
• While ARSO standards support transaction-level and supply-chain traceability, they fail to meet EUDR requirements for plot-level geolocation and the use of such data to verify deforestation-free production.
• Transparency is limited as access to standards requires account registration and information regarding audit methodologies, outcomes, and grievance procedures is not publicly available.
• ARSO's governance is a comparative strength, featuring an established structure, multistakeholder representation, and alignment with international ISO conformity assessment norms.

APA

Verma, R. (2026). Supporting EUDR Compliance Through Regional Sustainability Standards. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-03/eudr-compliance-sustainability-standards.pdf

Chicago

Verma, Rupal. Supporting EUDR Compliance Through Regional Sustainability Standards. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2026. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-03/eudr-compliance-sustainability-standards.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Verma |first1=Rupal |title=Supporting EUDR Compliance Through Regional Sustainability Standards |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=March 2026 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-03/eudr-compliance-sustainability-standards.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{verma2026supporting, author = {Verma, Rupal}, title = {{Supporting EUDR Compliance Through Regional Sustainability Standards}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2026}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2026-03/eudr-compliance-sustainability-standards.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }