EUDR and cattle: what importers must collect
Beef, leather, and hides are in scope, with a geolocation rule that differs from crops.
EUDR · Regulation (EU) 2023/1115
Cattle is one of the seven commodities covered by the EU Deforestation Regulation. Placing cattle on the EU market needs a Due Diligence Statement filed before customs clearance.
Cattle is one of the seven commodities covered by the EU Deforestation Regulation, so cattle and the products derived from it cannot enter the EU market unless it is deforestation-free after 31 December 2020, legally produced in its country of origin, and covered by a Due Diligence Statement. Annex I lists it under 0102, 0201, 0202, 0206, 1602 50, 4101, 4104, 4107.
Is cattle covered by the EUDR?
Yes. Cattle is on the list of seven commodities, alongside cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya and wood. Scope extends to the derived products in Annex I, so a finished good containing cattle can be in scope too. The exact boundary is the CN code: for cattle the relevant headings are 0102, 0201, 0202, 0206, 1602 50, 4101, 4104, 4107. Several Annex I rows carry an ex prefix, meaning only the described subset of that heading is caught, and the Annex itself is versioned. Article 34 lets the Commission update the codes by delegated act, so check the current text rather than a cached list.
What cattle importers have to collect
The same three things every covered commodity needs: plot geolocation for the ground it came from, evidence that it was produced legally and is deforestation-free, and a Due Diligence Statement filed before customs. There is no de minimis: the obligation applies whatever the quantity, including where cattle is a minor ingredient inside a processed product.
For cattle you geolocate every establishment where the animals were kept, not a growing plot, and each establishment is given as a single point whatever its size. Animals move, so the chain of establishments matters. The date of production is the animal's date of birth, not a harvest date.
What is not in scope for cattle
Finished leather goods are outside Annex I. A handbag under heading 4202 is not a covered product even though the leather that went into it was. Most cattle rows also carry the "ex" prefix, meaning only the bovine subset of the heading is in scope.
When does this apply, and what next?
From 30 December 2026 for large and medium operators and 30 June 2027 for natural persons and micro and small undertakings established by 31 December 2024. The deadlines page sets out the four separate dates the Regulation keeps and why they are not interchangeable. Start by confirming which cattle products you handle are in scope, then ask suppliers for geolocation and statement reference numbers now. EUDR for SMEs covers the reliefs for smaller importers, and the EUDR overview walks the full flow.
Sources
Collect the plots once. File every shipment after.
Bindu holds the geolocation, the legality evidence, and the audit trail in one record, and assembles the statement from it when a shipment moves.