On the 18 December 2023,  the Pilot Testing of the Deforestation Information System started and will run till the end of January. 100 stakeholders will participate in this testing phase. This includes stakeholders across the relevant commodities, operators of different sizes (including SMEs and non-SMEs) and a geographical balance. The testing period will provide valuable feedback and observations about the system, to ensure it is easy-to-use.

The new Deforestation Regulation will apply to operators and traders who place or make available any of the relevant commodities (cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soya and wood) on the EU market, or export from the EU. They must ensure that the products or commodities are deforestation-free, produced in line with the relevant legislation in the country of production, and are covered by a due diligence statement. The Information System aims to facilitate the submission and processing of the Due Diligence Statements for relevant operators, traders, competent authorities and customs to ensure a smooth transition at the end of 2024, when the rules enter into application.

Next steps

The Commission will provide a training environment and “train-the-trainers” sessions to all interested companies in the summer of 2024, in coordination with member states authorities. This will give all interested stakeholders the opportunity to familiarize themselves with the System well before the Regulation enters into application. The Commission will also then make available user manuals and other relevant self-learning material such as video tutorials.

Source: European Commission