The EU’s new deforestation rules have created major hurdles for agricultural exporters since 2022. Nigeria plans to use the extended deadline to bring its supply chains into full compliance.

Nigeria’s Ministry of Agriculture last week issued a national strategy to comply with the European Union’s new deforestation rules. The plan, published as the White Paper on Strategy for EUDR Compliance in Nigeria, calls for a traceability system for agricultural products. NASRDA, the national space agency, will provide geospatial monitoring to track farms and supply chains.

The initiative reflects Abuja’s aim to maintain access for Nigerian agricultural exports to the European market. The EU Deforestation Regulation, which will bar imports of cocoa, coffee, soy, palm oil, wood and beef linked to deforested land, will take full effect at the end of 2026. The stakes are high for Nigeria, whose agribusiness exports to the EU have expanded rapidly in recent years.

Nigeria has more than tripled its agribusiness exports to the EU over the last five years. According to an April 2025 report by the European Commission, EU imports from Nigeria reached €1.68 billion in 2024, up from €477 million in 2020.

Over this period, exports grew by an average of 37 percent a year. The sharpest increase occurred in 2024, when exports surged by more than 129 percent, more than doubling the €735 million recorded in 2023.

Cocoa Dominates Nigeria’s EU Exports

This surge is driven almost entirely by cocoa. Cocoa beans and related products such as paste, butter and chocolate accounted for about 89 percent of agribusiness exports to the EU in 2024, worth €1.49 billion compared with €375 million in 2020. The rise reflects higher shipment volumes, soaring global cocoa prices and sustained demand from Europe’s chocolate industry.

Other categories remain small. Oilseeds and pulses generated €79 million in 2024, while margarine and other vegetable oils reached €55 million. Exports of fruits and nuts, gums and resins, food preparations and beverages continue to grow but each represent less than 1 percent of total agribusiness shipments to the EU.

Cocoa’s dominance highlights Nigeria’s limited diversification in agribusiness exports. Higher-value processed products, animal-based goods and other advanced food preparations remain largely absent from the export mix.

Growing Urgency to Comply With EUDR

The rapid rise in exports makes EUDR compliance a pressing priority. Nigeria’s dependence on cocoa also increases its vulnerability, since the EU absorbs nearly 60 percent of the value of the country’s cocoa bean exports, according to data from the Trade Map platform.

The EUDR’s impact extends beyond agribusiness. Several non-food agricultural sectors with links to deforestation, including natural rubber and wood, could also be affected. Nigeria earned nearly $71 million from natural rubber exports in 2024, with about 46 percent destined for the EU. Wood exports show a similar pattern, with roughly half of all revenue coming from European buyers.

Stéphanas Assocle