If you work in supply chains, you’ll know the pain all too well: suppliers being asked for the same information again and again, just in different formats. One customer wants it in one spreadsheet, another wants it in a portal, regulators want it another way. The result? Wasted time, rising costs, and a whole lot of frustration.
Yet without providing that information, market access isn’t possible. This duplication highlights a bigger problem: there’s no agreed way of sharing due diligence information under the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
That’s where standards come in.
What do we mean by “standards”?
Think of standards as a common language for data. They set out what information needs to be exchanged and how it should be structured/formatted when exchanged.
Without standards, every business builds their own template. With standards, everyone speaks the same language - and suddenly, information can move smoothly between organisations.
Standards can be:
- Industry-led, like the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) defining due diligence reference numbers.
- Business-driven, like GS1, whose electronic data interface (EDI) underpin global trade.
- Community-built, where open groups collaborate on shared protocols.
- Internationally recognised, like ISO standards, which give global credibility.
What exists today?
In the EUDR context, a couple of initiatives have started to take shape:
- CEPI’s DDS numbers: a way to exchange due diligence reference numbers.
- GS1 standards: well-established in trade and now with elements supporting exchange of due diligence reference numbers.
Some of Interu’s users are leveraging CEPI’s standard; others are using the GS1 standard in EDI; and others still are using both. As these standards have emerged, and as we expect them to evolve further and new ones such as EUDR-X (for the print and publishing industry) take shape, Interu is incorporating them as options for users to share information between customers.
The challenge is that EUDR compliance goes far beyond a reference number. Companies need to prove traceability all the way back to origin, including legality and sustainability data. At the moment, there isn’t a single standard that covers it all.
Why does this matter?
Without a standard, suppliers are stuck filling out multiple forms for the same information, over and over. Buyers then spend resources re-interpreting and stitching together inconsistent data.
With standards in place:
- Suppliers provide data once, in an agreed format.
- Buyers can trust and verify information without rework.
- Accreditation from recognised bodies adds credibility.
- Compliance becomes scalable and cost-efficient.
We’ve seen this in other industries: finance, for example, developed the FIX protocol for trading data, which later became an ISO standard. What started small grew into the backbone of global financial markets.
The road ahead
Right now, EUDR data exchange is at the beginning of its standardisation journey. Sector-specific solutions like CEPI’s are important steps, but they don’t go far enough. Eventually, the industry will need to come together to define a wider standard that captures the full picture of due diligence.
That won’t happen overnight - creating an accredited ISO standard can take years. But the future is clear: standards are coming, and they’ll be the key to making compliance both credible and efficient.
We believe this is just the start of that journey. Get in touch to learn more.
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