Exporting Bonsucro certified biofuel to UK given green light after Brexit

15th January 2021

The UK Government has confirmed that following Brexit there will not be changes on biofuel imports. The Government will continue to trust the EU RED recognised schemes, including Bonsucro, that demonstrate the sustainability credentials of biofuel consignments. Bonsucro learned this in an email from Department for Transport on 14th January 2021.

Bonsucro’s Head of Standards and Innovation Nicolas Viart said, “This news is very positive for our Bonsucro-EU certified members. It means they can continue to benefit from access to the UK market, despite Brexit, at no additional cost. Whilst the UK has indicated it may diverge from the EU rules moving forward, we have indicated our preference to maintain a consistent approach to sustainability criteria to minimise the administrative burden to producers.”

Bonsucro is currently working to adapt its certification system to incorporate the new requirements included in the updated EU RED legislation (branded EU RED II). Bonsucro has appointed Brinkmann Consulting to bring additional time and vital experience to the team. Brinkmann also works very closely with the EU appointed consultancy firm, Guidehouse. The process should last five months.

Bonsucro has successfully been in recognition for EU RED compliance since 2011, which has been a big benefit for biofuel producing certified members.

Bonsucro has been working to integrate its certification system into more government policies across the world. For example, in 2020 Bonsucro was given recognition for the import of certified bagasse pellets into the Netherlands by the Dutch government. In addition, Bonsucro has been working with the Brazilian biofuel policy, RenovaBio, since 2019 to understand the content of the scheme, its certification process and ways to collaborate to make life simpler for producers. Bonsucro is also evaluating possible synergies with CORSIA scheme for Sustainable Aviation Fuels.

Members will be kept informed as the Bonsucro certification is recognised by more government trade policies.