Fairtrade supports producers to protect forests and prevent deforestation
Deforestation is a driver of climate change and contributes to loss of biodiversity. The Fairtrade Standards have built-in forest protection requirements that meet or go beyond what is required in European Union regulations. What's more, Fairtrade offers support and financial benefits to producers – and works to tackle root causes of deforestation such as poverty – so they can play their part to farm sustainably and conserve forests.
Healthy forests are not just good for the planet, through their important role in carbon sequestration and reducing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Forests also contribute to soil and water protection, support diverse animal and plant life, and serve as home to indigenous populations. Forests are essential to the livelihoods of more than 1.6 billion people around the world.
Poverty and a lack of decent living conditions lead people to turn to the forest to meet their basic needs, such as using wood for fuel, or clearing land to grow crops to eat or sell. Weak land and forest governance also play a role.
The activities that cause most deforestation are the timber industry, followed by agriculture, wildfires, and other activities such as mining, or replacement with commodities like soy or palm production.
Fairtrade is dedicated to protecting forests through fundamental elements such as our comprehensive Standards, financial benefits for producers, essential data, tailored services and support, and advocacy on what it takes to prevent deforestation sustainably and fairly.
Our approach to preventing deforestation and protecting forests
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Fairer for farmers
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High quality data and monitoring
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Robust and aligned standards
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Tackling root causes
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Raising our voices together
How Fairtrade supports compliance with the European Union Deforestation Regulation
No certification can take the place of companies’ own due diligence – that’s clearly stated in the EUDR. But Fairtrade has resources and expertise to help producers and their trade partners along the pathway to EUDR compliance.
Fairtrade can support companies with four main European Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) due diligence obligations:
Areas of support
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Collecting geolocation data
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Collecting deforestation monitoring data
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Conducting risk assessments
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Implementing risk mitigation measures
Additional resources
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Tools
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Documents
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Research