Costa Rica launched the first batch of "non-deforestation coffee" to cater to the EU market.

Recently, according to Costa Rica elmundo, Costa Rica launched the first "deforestation free coffee", the batch of coffee beans will be harvested after December 2020, to ensure that no deforestation in order to expand the planting area, can meet the EU EUDR requirements, and the batch of coffee beans have been sold and will be shipped to Italy.

The "Deforestation Free Coffee"is part of a pilot bean project promoted by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Costa Rican Coffee Association (ICAFE). The batch consists of 275 bags containing 60 kg of coffee beans, produced by producers in Tarrazú.

In June of this year, the European Union issued its first Zero Deforestation Act, also known as the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which stipulates that any individual or business can not sell products related to deforestation in the EU market, including coffee and cocoa. The bill requires operators to conduct due diligence on their products, trace the origin of the goods they sell to determine they do not involve deforestation or cause forest degradation, or face penalties ranging from fines, restrictions or bans on exports.

Costa Rica's first non-deforestation coffee exports, Costa Rica's Ministry of Environment and Energy Deputy Minister of Strategic Management said this is an example of climate change adaptation, if Costa Rica does not invest in climate adaptation, will lose market competitiveness, after all, Costa Rica coffee exports are mainly for the United States and EU countries, of which coffee exports to the EU accounted for 38.4% of total exports.

In addition, the pilot project leader said that the collaboration with the Los Santos region of Costa Rica was due to the fact that the region produced more coffee in Costa Rica, and the collaboration with the Taraju Cooperative was due to the fact that it was the country's largest coffee growers 'cooperative with more than 4,500 producers.

The cooperation is one of Costa Rica's key development projects, due to the country's current coffee industry setbacks, according to the Costa Rican Coffee Institute (ICAFE) earlier said that due to bad weather has been a shortage of labor, Costa Rica coffee production in 2023/24 will be reduced by 13%, while exports will also be reduced. There is also strong supply in other Central American countries, such as Honduras, Guatemala and Peru, where coffee of the same quality can be purchased at lower prices. To improve Costa Rica's competitiveness, it needs to respond to market changes, so this cooperation is very beneficial to Costa Rica's coffee industry.