Ethiopia's coffee and cut flower producers struggle to adhere to new EU regulations

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Ethiopia's coffee and cut flower industries are grappling with significant challenges due to new EU regulations. From January 2025, producers must comply with the bloc's Due Diligence Act, which mandates strict environmental standards for exporting to Europe. Millions of small-scale coffee farmers will need to demonstrate that their land is free from deforestation, while flower farmers will have to address a pest that threatens European markets or risk exclusion from the trade. This poses a major concern for Ethiopia, which exports 30 percent of its coffee and 8 percent of its flowers to Europe. Adhering to these new EU standards will be a daunting task, as FRANCE 24's Clothilde Hazard and Olivia Bizot report.