This handbook demonstrates how the OECD-FAO Guidance can be applied to address deforestation by contextualising existing recommendations and directing users towards helpful sources of due diligence information.

This paper summarizes the current state of concepts and approaches for addressing deforestation in the trade, marketing, and production of agricultural commodities that have a disproportionate impact on forests at international, national, and landscape level. To date, predominant attention has been directed towards the role of the private sector and "consumer countries" that shape market regulation. This publication aims to complement the international discourse by generating a greater focus on the role of "producer country" governments at the national and local level to support efforts to decouple agricultural production from deforestation.

FAO’s most recent global synthesis on planted forests was released in 2009 and the last Unasylva on planted forests was published in 2005. Developed together with a coalition of external partners, including the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) task force on planted forests and the TreeDivNet network, Issue 254 hereby responds to the need for wider information-sharing on data, tools and approaches available for leveraging the contributions of planted forests to meet the target of increasing the global forest area of 3 percent by 2030, which Global Forest Goal 1 provides for. Unasylva issue 254 was launched in November 2023 at the International Congress on Planted Forests 2023 (ICPF2023) – the first edition of this global forum to be held in Africa (Nairobi, Kenya).

This guide aims to support growers and businesses operating in the global avocado industry in their efforts to implement responsible business conduct (RBC) practices to improve the sustainability of their operations. By committing to RBC and implementing due diligence processes, these businesses can avoid social conflicts and environmental damage, which will also help to minimize financial losses and maintain long-term profitability. Responsible business conduct helps to identify, prioritize and deal with problems as they arise, rather than waiting for them to grow bigger or be discovered by others. The purpose of this guide is to strengthen the capacity of avocado producing, packing and exporting businesses and associations, including small and medium-sized companies, to begin their RBC journey by implementing Step 2 of the due diligence process (i.e. identify and prioritize risks of negative impacts). The guide also discusses ways to address these risks to implement Step 3: Cease, remedy, prevent and/or mitigate risks. The guide builds on the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains and provides references to many other useful resources. It was developed by the Responsible Fruits Project with support from the Government of Germany.

This guide aims to support growers and businesses operating in the global pineapple industry in their efforts to implement responsible business conduct (RBC) practices to improve the sustainability of their operations. By committing to RBC and implementing due diligence processes, these businesses can avoid social conflicts and environmental damage, which will also help to minimize financial losses and maintain long-term profitability. Responsible business conduct helps to identify, prioritize and deal with problems as they arise, rather than waiting for them to grow bigger or be discovered by others. The purpose of this guide is to strengthen the capacity of pineapple producing, packing and exporting businesses and associations, including small and medium-sized companies, to begin their RBC journey by implementing Step 2 of the due diligence process (i.e. identify and prioritize risks of negative impacts). The guide also discusses ways to address these risks to implement Step 3: Cease, remedy, prevent and/or mitigate risks. The guide builds on the OECD-FAO Guidance for Responsible Agricultural Supply Chains and provides references to many other useful resources. It was developed by the Responsible Fruits Project with support from the Government of Germany.

Public procurement makes up a significant part of national economies: 10–25% of gross domestic product (GDP), depending on the country. Appropriate laws and regulations are an essential tool to direct the action of procurers towards the public good and avoid corruption and misallocation of resources, while at the same time sustaining progress and social goals. The original approach of this book combines juridical, economic, and technical expertise to find common terrain and a common language in order to debate the specific issues that affect public administrations across the world that need advancing and modernizing. The book features contributions across four specific themes of interest to the procurer’s day-to-day job in modern public purchasing organizations: preferences and political economy in public procurement, climate change, defence procurement, and human rights in public procurement. The aim is to let the new emerging trade-offs between competition and sustainability emerge, highlighting at the same time the possible synergies between the relevant policy objectives. The book takes into account sectoral specificities, reinforced by recent global events such as wars, natural disasters, and populism. The unique format features in each section an interdisciplinary debate between two experts across different disciplines who deliberate and engage one another so as to improve the mutual understanding across disciplines, followed by two additional contributions. This book will be of interest to scholars, researchers, and policymakers worldwide.

The new EU Regulation for Deforestation-Free Imports (EUDR) stipulates that by 2025, certain commodities may only be imported to the European Union if it can be proven that they have been produced on land that has not been subjected to deforestation or forest degradation. [Author] One of these commodities – coffee – is a source of income for farmers in Guatemala and Honduras, representing 14 percent and 52 percent of these countries’ agrifood exports respectively. [Author] In 2023, one fifth of all Guatemalan coffee and half of the coffee exported from Honduras was destined to the European Union, and the majority was produced by smallholders whose livelihoods face significant threats from climate change and rising production costs. [Author] In this context, the public and private actors who manage and govern the coffee supply chains in these countries must develop cost-effective traceability systems that can help farmers verify the deforestation-free origin of their coffee without worsening the economic pressures that they currently face. [Author] This report examines the economic and political structures of the coffee supply chains in Guatemala and Honduras with respect to potential traceability systems that could satisfy the requirements of the EUDR. [Author] This publication is part of the Country Investment Highlights series under the FAO Investment Centre's Knowledge for Investment (K4I) programme. [Author]