The European Commission has officially added soluble coffee to the list of products covered by its landmark EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). The change was confirmed in a Delegated Act adopted on July 13 as part of a broader update to the regulation, which aims to ensure products sold in the EU are not linked to deforestation or forest degradation.
According to the Commission, the inclusion of soluble coffee, identified by the Harmonized System (HS) code ‘2101 11 00’, is intended to close a potential loophole. Officials stated that excluding the product created an "incoherent approach for the coffee sector" and could result in the relocation of deforestation risk rather than its elimination. This amendment ensures that various forms of coffee are subject to the same due diligence requirements.
To allow the industry sufficient time to adapt, the regulation will apply to soluble coffee beginning December 30, 2027. This is a deferred deadline compared to the main EUDR implementation, which takes effect for large and medium-sized operators on December 30, 2026. The update was part of a simplification package that also saw other products added or removed from the regulation's scope and provided technical updates to the information system used for submitting due diligence statements.