Practical Support for SMEs in Brazil and Costa Rica to Keep Up with Sustainability and Traceability Requirements Current European sustainability and traceability requirements, including the EU Green Deal and the EUDR, are prompting SMEs in Latin America to consider how they can adapt, remain competitive, and maintain access to international and premium markets. Through three AL-INVEST Verde projects in Brazil and Costa Rica, we worked with local partners, SMEs and producers to turn these requirements into practical action. What stands out? A key learning from these experiences is that sustainability and deforestation-free value chains can only be achieved by working closely with the actors who make daily decisions on resource management and production practices. Coffee and cocoa producers play a crucial role at the beginning of global value chains, while SMEs are the backbone of local economies and powerful drivers of innovation and market transformation. With the right tools, knowledge, and incentives, both can accelerate the shift towards more sustainable production and consumption patterns. “There’s also an important learning for European actors: transparent and deforestation-free value chains depend on coordinated action between producers, SMEs, industry actors, governments and consumers. These projects show how European and Latin American partners can work together to build more responsible, inclusive and sustainable sourcing and consumption practices.”, says Dr. Adriana Ballon Ossia, CSCP Project Manager. Toward sustainable and inclusive value chains In Brazil, the CacauiCultura and ARABICA projects focused on cocoa and coffee value chains respectively. Both supported producers and small and medium-sized enterprises in strengthening sustainability practices and climate resilience, promote access to inclusive market access, and integrate traceability in their value chains. In the ARABICA project, we partnered with Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) and the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA). Through workshops, co-creation processes, and technical support, producers improved their understanding of digital traceability tools and gained access to best practices in relation to labour rights and social and gender equlity, climate change and regenerative agriculture. Watch these videos from women coffee producers who were part of the project. Promoting climate resilience and regenerative agriculture The CacauiCultura project, implemented by the CSCP and SEBRAE, supported cocoa producers and SMEs strengthen sustainability management through targeted workshops, mentoring, and collaborative learning. It provided capacity-building opportunities on traceability and the EUDR, climate change, regenerative agriculture, and circular economy practices. It also amplified producers’ voices through interviews and storytelling initiatives, while fostering knowledge exchange through fairs, networking activities, and peer-learning events. Check out three publications with findings from CacauiCultura on the topics: EUDR, climate change, and regenerative agriculture! How voluntary commitments are going a long way in Costa Rica In Costa Rica, the Green Codes project (Códigos Verdes) developed a flexible voluntary sustainability agreement for SMEs across agriculture, industry, innovation and services. Implemented by the CSCP together with the Chamber of Commerce of Costa Rica, the project supported businesses to identify, document, and communicate environmental, social and governance practices that were often already in place, but not yet formally captured. Read how the Green Codes engaged 200 SMEs to drive sustainable transformation Our takeaways The projects showed that regulations such as the EUDR are most effective when translated into practical solutions for producers and businesses on the ground. Building sustainable and deforestation-free value chains therefore requires collaboration across value chains and between European and Latin American stakeholders to create lasting environmental, social, and economic impact. “Having implemented these three projects, we have practical evidence that sustainability compliance is not only a risk to manage. With the right tools, partnerships and support mechanisms, it can also open opportunities for innovation, market differentiation and value creation.”, concludes Adriana. Do you have further questions or would like to collaborate with us? Contact Dr. Adriana Ballon Ossia!