New due diligence requirements for companies in the agri-food sector: norm diffusion and partner uptake

Scientific Advisory Board on Agricultural Policy, Food and Consumer Health Protection at the BMEL (WBAE)
OECD

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Summary of topics and results
LkSG, EUDR, CSDDD – various acronyms have been created that represent regulations on national and on EU level that expand the responsibility of companies in importing countries for their supply chains. On this panel, experts discussed the possible effects that this development will have on trade, human rights and labour standards along supply chains and how companies, suppliers and producers on both ends of the supply chain are equipped to deal with these new due diligence obligations.
The foundation of the discussion was laid by two recent reports published on the topic of due diligence regulations in the agri-food sector. Professor Christine Wieck started off with her keynote speech by presenting key recommendations by the Scientific Advisory Board at the BMEL (WBAE). The group of scientists analysed the new regulations from a multidisciplinary perspective and derived three packages of recommendations, which they presented to German Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Cem Özdemir in December. The audience was then given a full picture of mandatory and voluntary due diligence measures in the G7 by Sophia Gnych of the OECD’s Centre for Responsible Business Conduct. A key take-away was that 63 % of the measures within the scope of the OECD review were only introduced in the past three years, which is a clear indication of a recent norm diffusion within the G7.
Following these two insights, the expert panel invited perspectives on this extension of due diligence regulations from the following panellists: Gunther Beger of the directorate for SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation at UNIDO, who was also closely involved in the drafting of the German Supply Chain Due Diligence Act, Dr Leonard Mizzi of the European Commission, who is Head of Unit at the Directorate-General for International Partnerships, responsible for sustainable agri-food systems and fisheries, Dr Bettina Rudloff from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin (SWP), who contributed to the recent report by the WBAE through her expertise at the interface of trade, agricultural policy and foreign policy, and Dr Johannes Graf von Keyserlingk, who is the head of Corporate Social Responsibility at Handelsverband Deutschland, a leading organisation in the German retail sector.
In the intense discussion, facilitated by Prof Achim Spiller, various issues were highlighted, including the risk that due diligence regulations could become a “boomerang” – meaning that farmers at the beginning of the chain could be losing out, even though the improvement of their situation is a key objective of the regulation. To mitigate such risks, support measures need to be put in place. The Team Europe Initiative, which is a collaborative effort by the European Commission, the Netherlands, Germany and France in order to assist producing countries in responding to the regulation on deforestation-free supply chains serves as one example for such support measures. The role of certification schemes as one tool for companies to fulfil their due diligence regulations was another topic that also resonated with the audience. In their expert report, the Scientific Advisory Board recommended that certification schemes should play a pivotal role, e.g., due to the large number of business relationships, but that their quality needs to be improved first and guaranteed officially. The panel collectively agreed that the initial implementation phase of such regulations should be considered a learning period, allowing for minor errors by companies. A collaborative approach with the competent authorities overseeing implementation was emphasised as crucial during this phase.

References:
OECD (2024): Review of G7 Government-led Voluntary and Mandatory Due Diligence Measures for Sustainable Agri-food Supply Chains, OECD Publishing, Paris.

WBAE (2023): New due diligence requirements for companies in the agri-food sector: Recommendations on current legislative developments, Expert report, Berlin.

Speakers

Christine Wieck

Keynote-Speaker
Member and lead author / Scientific Advisory Board to the Federal Ministry of Food & Agriculture (WBAE) | University of Hohenheim Show CV / Vita

Sophia Gnych

Keynote-Speaker
Policy Analyst / OECD's Centre for Responsible Business Conduct (RBC) Show CV / Vita

Leonard Mizzi

Keynote-Speaker
Head of Unit Sustainable Agri-Food systems and Fisheries / European Commission Show CV / Vita

Achim Spiller

Facilitator
Chair / Scientific Advisory Board to the Federal Ministry of Food & Agriculture (WBAE) | University of Göttingen Show CV / Vita

Bettina Rudloff

Panellist
Senior Associate / German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) Show CV / Vita

Johannes Graf von Keyserlingk

Panellist
Head of Corporate Social Responsibility / Handelsverband Deutschland (HDE)

Gunther Beger

Panellist
Managing Director, Directorate for SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation / United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) Show CV / Vita