1. Scope

Keywords

Rationale

This proposed standard guide has been developed in response to increasing global regulatory requirements targeting deforestation-related risks in agricultural supply chains, with a specific focus on coffee. The guide establishes a conformity assessment framework tailored to the coffee sector, organized around four core pillars: Track and Trace, Authentication, Validation, and Oversight. These pillars collectively support the transparent verification of origin, chain of custody, and regulatory compliance from the point of harvest through to importation and market entry. Coffee has been identified by international regulators as a high-risk commodity for deforestation and land-use change. As such, supply chain actors are now required to provide geolocation data, documented proof of deforestation-free sourcing, and verified harvesting and production practices. This guide supports those requirements by offering a structured and repeatable process for assessing upstream documentation, including geospatial origin attestations, farmer declarations, and sustainability certifications. By aligning the verification process with global deforestation mitigation requirements and import control obligations, this standard provides a reliable methodology for regulators, importers, and third-party assessors to determine whether coffee shipments comply with deforestation-related laws and trade restrictions.