The Round Table on Responsible Soy 2026 Conference brought together stakeholders from across the soy supply chain at an urgent moment for the sector. With the EUDR now approaching its implementation (30th December 2026), discussion increasingly went beyond data collection, to how to build systems that turn that data into credible, defensible decisions.
For Satelligence, several themes stood out across the sessions and discussions:
✓ the importance of a well-designed due diligence system,
✓ the need for evidence that can withstand regulatory scrutiny,
✓ and a growing recognition that traceability needs to be practical, proportionate, and connected to action.
Key Learning 1: EUDR compliance is about the system as a whole
One of the clearest messages from Dutch competent authority, NVWA, was that EUDR compliance cannot be reduced to collecting the right documents. In a far more qualitative approach, what matters is the design and quality of the overall Due Diligence System (DDS) and being able to show:
- How information is collected
- How risks are assessed
- How decisions are made
- How identified issues are addressed
This also means that due diligence needs to become part of everyday business processes. Integrating it into procurement and sourcing workflows can help make compliance systematic, instead of something that happens after purchasing decisions have already been made.
Satelligence Nature & Climate Director, Alan Kroeger, in discussion with client Cefetra on the value of credible Nature Intelligence for truly understanding the ground-level reality of complex, global supply chains.
Key Learning 2: Regulators need to understand how you reached your conclusions
The NVWA’s experience from EUDR dry runs highlighted that having extensive documentation is not enough. Companies need to be able to explain exactly why particular information was collected, assessed, and how it contributed to the conclusion that a product is compliant. And, what is most important, this evidence must also produce a clear thread throughout the process.
The question has moved beyond “Do we have the evidence?” to “Can we show how this evidence supports our sourcing decision?” Defensible due diligence means making the reasoning behind a conclusion transparent and repeatable.
Key Learning 3: Certification supports due diligence
Certification schemes can provide valuable evidence and structured approaches to responsible sourcing. Other initiatives, such as government or landscape-level programmes, can help companies understand and manage supply chain risks.
But these mechanisms do not automatically fulfil a company’s EUDR due diligence obligations. Instead, third-party evidence needs to sit within the company’s wider due diligence process. Companies still need to understand what the evidence demonstrates, how reliable and relevant it is for the specific risk being assessed, and how it contributes to their overall conclusion.
Certification and other sector initiatives therefore become useful building blocks within stronger, more integrated due diligence systems.
Satelligence CEO Niels Wielaard presents forward-looking approach of Nature Intelligence at the RTRS 20th Anniversary Celebratory Dinner.
Key Learning 4: The future of traceability may not be… more traceability
The ambition of achieving complete farm-level traceability across global soy supply chains is clear, but the practical reality is more complex, particularly where supply chains involve thousands of producers and fragmented sourcing regions.
Discussions at RTRS reflected a growing recognition that traceability does not necessarily mean having to understand everything, everywhere, all at once. Instead, talks highlighted the question: What is traceability ultimately trying to achieve?
This is where risk assessment can play an important role. Rather than applying the same traceability approach across an entire supply chain, companies can use risk intelligence to identify hotspots (such as sourcing regions or landscapes where the likelihood or potential impact of deforestation and conversion is higher) and prioritise deeper traceability and investigation there.
This helps direct investment, supplier engagement, and monitoring towards the areas where they can make the biggest difference. Should traceability for the sake of traceability be prioritised, it risks diverting attention and resources from the outcome companies ultimately want to achieve: reducing deforestation and conversion, and driving meaningful change on the ground.
The goal, therefore, may not be maximum traceability, but rather traceability that is fit for purpose and connected to genuine impact.
What happens when compliance (finally) becomes operational?
For the past few years, much of the focus has been on building traceability, collecting geolocation data and understanding the requirements of the regulation. As implementation approaches, the next challenge is turning these foundations into processes that work in practice.
That means moving beyond asking whether a company has sufficient information and towards asking whether it can use that information effectively: to identify where risk sits, determine what needs further investigation, make proportionate decisions and take action where necessary.
This also highlights an important relationship between compliance and sustainable sourcing. A well-designed due diligence process should not simply identify suppliers or production areas that present a potential problem. It should help companies distinguish between different types and levels of risk, prioritise where attention is needed, and support informed engagement and action.
Ultimately, this is where Nature Intelligence can support a more effective approach to EUDR compliance: by connecting supply chain, geospatial and environmental information so that companies can understand where risks are concentrated, investigate them in context and make better-informed sourcing decisions.
As the soy sector moves closer to EUDR implementation, the organisations best prepared may not necessarily be those with the most data. They will be those with the clearest processes for turning information into decisions they can explain, confidently defend, and act upon.
Our Satelligence team spent two days learning, discussing, and exchanging ideas on the future of sustainable soy.
About Satelligence
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