EU import compliance for food commodities operates on a risk-based system that changes over time — which products face increased border checks, and at what frequency, is reviewed periodically rather than fixed. Buyers who source into the EU need to understand the framework, not just memorise a static checklist that can go out of date.
This article covers the regulatory structure governing cashew imports into the EU, the aflatoxin standard specifically, and one point of confusion worth clearing up directly: the EU Deforestation Regulation, despite frequently being raised in supply chain conversations, does not apply to cashew.
📜 The frameworkHow EU Border Controls Actually Work
Regulation (EU) 2017/625 establishes the EU's general framework for official controls on food entering the bloc — the umbrella system under which specific commodities are checked at Border Control Posts (BCPs) for compliance with EU food safety standards.
Within that framework, Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 identifies specific food and feed products from specific third countries that are subject to increased official controls, based on identified risk — commonly mycotoxins (including aflatoxin), pesticide residues, or microbiological contamination, depending on the product and origin history.
This list is reviewed roughly every six months and can add or remove specific products and origins based on updated risk data. Buyers should confirm the current listing status for cashew kernels from Vietnam at the time of shipment rather than relying on a status from a previous review cycle.
The Standard That Matters Most For Cashew Specifically
Aflatoxin limits for tree nuts entering the EU are set under food safety regulation, with maximum levels varying by nut type and intended use. For cashew kernels, buyers should work to the benchmark of ≤10ppb total aflatoxin and ≤2ppb aflatoxin B1 — the standard SVC tests every EU-bound batch against, with results confirmed via accredited external laboratory testing alongside SVC's own in-house screening.
TRACES And The Certificate Of Inspection
For products requiring an official health certificate under Annex II, or for organic-certified shipments (covered in our organic cashew guide), the certificate is issued and tracked through TRACES (Trade Control and Expert System) — the EU's digital platform for managing official certificates for imports. The exporter's certifying body issues the certificate, and it must be correctly logged in TRACES before the shipment can clear at the EU border.
✅ Clarifying a common confusionThe EU Deforestation Regulation Does Not Apply To Cashew
The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) has generated significant supply chain conversation across commodity trading generally, and it is reasonable for buyers to ask whether it affects cashew sourcing. It does not — EUDR's due diligence and traceability requirements apply to a specific, named list of commodities: cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soya, and wood, along with derived products.
Cashew is not among the covered commodities. Buyers do not need EUDR-specific geolocation and deforestation-free due diligence documentation for cashew shipments. This is worth stating plainly, because the regulation's prominence in general supply chain discussion sometimes leads buyers to ask for documentation that does not apply to this product category.
What does apply, and increasingly so, is the broader direction of EU corporate sustainability due diligence legislation covered in our SMETA article — which is a separate framework from EUDR and does reach cashew supply chains through buyer-side ethical and social compliance requirements.
EU Compliance Checklist For Cashew Buyers
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