What does agricultural use mean?
Agricultural use provides the destination-side land-use category in EUDR deforestation analysis. The issue is not only whether forest was lost, but whether the land was converted to an agricultural purpose.
agricultural use
Use of land for agriculture under EUDR, including agricultural plantations, set-aside agricultural areas, and livestock rearing.
1 official sourceSingle-source term
Source context
EUDR Article 2 defines agricultural use as use of land for agriculture, including agricultural plantations, set-aside agricultural areas, and rearing livestock.
Official definitions by source
EUDR
Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products
the use of land for the purpose of agriculture, including for agricultural plantations and set-aside agricultural areas, and for rearing livestock;
Reference: Article 2, point 5
Definition status
Public draft page. Preserve EUDR land-use, forest-type, actor-location, and market-trigger boundaries.
Key EUDR compliance trigger
EUDR applies to the listed commodities and derived products placed on or exported from the EU market from 30 December 2024 (large operators) and 30 June 2025 (SMEs), subject to the benchmarking system that classifies countries as low, standard, or high risk. The applicable obligation level depends on country risk classification as well as operator size.
Practical application
Implementation records should capture current and historical land use, plot boundaries, commodity production, livestock use where relevant, set-aside status, timestamps, and evidence connecting land-use change to a commodity supply claim.
Minespider commentary
Agricultural use is a conversion-trigger field. It links plot history, commodity production, and deforestation-free claims to a specific land-use purpose rather than a vague sustainability label.
Common confusions
- Treating any non-forest use as agricultural use. EUDR names agricultural plantations, set-aside agricultural areas, and livestock rearing.
- Checking forest loss without recording the post-conversion land use.
- Confusing agricultural use with country or shipment origin evidence.