Uganda, through Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA), has said the country has put in place measures that will guarantee that its coffee is free of deforestation ahead of the January 1, 2025 deadline.

The measures seek to guarantee that supply chains are free of products that contribute to deforestation, which the European Union has put as a condition for export of coffee to member states.

The EU, under the Deforestation Regulation, notes that only goods that are lawful in their country of origin and unrelated to deforestation and forest degradation will be permitted in markets of member countries.

Speaking at a stakeholders meeting, Dr Emmanuel Iyamulemye, the UCDA managing director, said Uganda is working towards complying with the regulations and UCDA was engaging different stakeholders for a way forward.

“We already have the national coffee register where farmers are registered, the number of trees they have and their location but we had not brought in EU Deforestation Regulation because by 2021, the regulations were not in place,” he said, noting that the regulations came in place in June 2023 yet we had already worked on the register.

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