EUDR Geolocation in Practice: What Plot-Level Data Actually Has to Prove

The requirement in plain terms

The EU Deforestation Regulation asks operators to demonstrate that covered commodities were not produced on land deforested after the regulation’s cut-off date. In practice this means three things must exist together: geolocation of the production plots, evidence of land-use status at and after the cut-off, and a documented due diligence process linking the two to a specific consignment.

Points versus polygons

A single coordinate is permitted only for very small plots; beyond that threshold a polygon is required. In smallholder geographies this is where projects stall — capturing thousands of accurate boundaries requires field teams, GPS-capable devices and a validation workflow that rejects sloppy walks. Budget for the fieldwork, not just the software.

Evidence of land-use status

Satellite time series is the practical instrument: canopy and land-cover analysis at the plot boundary, from before the cut-off date to the present. Where the imagery is ambiguous — smallholder plots under shade, mixed cropping, cloud-heavy geographies — remote sensing must be corroborated by field records rather than treated as final.

Linking plots to consignments

This is the step most operators underestimate. Having a database of mapped plots does not satisfy the regulation; the due diligence statement has to reference the plots that produced the specific shipment. That requires batch-level traceability through aggregation and processing, which returns us to identity capture at intake.

What to have ready before your buyer asks

A polygon dataset with recorded accuracy and capture date. A land-use assessment per plot with the method stated. A batch genealogy resolving each consignment to its contributing plots. A risk assessment and mitigation record. And a named owner inside your organisation who can produce all four within days, not weeks.