In a joint statement, 28 organizations representing European raw material producers and various industries called for a delay in the implementation of the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
This was reported by Euroactiv.
Position of stakeholders
Industrialists noted that they support the Commission's goal of ending deforestation and forest degradation, but raised questions about the expediency and lack of clarity of the mentioned regulation.
"With less than 100 days until the EUDR enters into force, we are still grappling with significant legal and market uncertainty," they said.
Business representatives point out that it is impossible to reconcile the practice with the regulations at the last minute. They emphasized that they had repeatedly warned and requested "clarification for efficient, harmonized implementation of the regulation" over the past year.
The signatories stated that their concerns remained unanswered, especially regarding the need to create a functional EU information system and proper benchmarking for low-risk countries.
"The current situation clearly shows that the implementation of the EUDR by the end of 2024 is simply unrealistic and will lead to the displacement of many small businesses from the market and the loss of jobs in rural areas," the statement said.
The signatory organizations predict the following difficulties after the implementation of the regulation on December 30, 2024:
- significant market disruptions that would seriously harm European commodity producers and processing industries;
- a threat to the security of supply chains;
- limiting access to the market of food, fodder and forest products vital for the EU;
- increasing inflationary pressure;
- a threat to the livelihoods of many people.
The European People's Party (EPP) published a statement calling the law on deforestation a "bureaucratic monster" and calling for its immediate postponement. Its members claim that the introduction of new rules will lead to the fact that products related to deforestation abroad will be banned from entering the EU market. Coffee, cocoa, beef, soy and palm oil will be banned.
Position of the Commission
Despite growing pressure and backlash from industry, trading partners, MEPs and governments, the Commission is insisting on implementing the EUDR from the previously planned date of 30 December 2024.
EPP Agriculture Committee Chairman Herbert Dorfmann previously told Euractiv that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will propose a way out of the deadlock in the implementation of the Deforestation Regulation.
Euroactiv too informs, that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has become one of those who called on the European Union to delay the implementation of the EU Regulation on deforestation. He discussed the issue with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and advocated "suspending the regulation until the open questions raised by the German Association of Digital and Newspaper Publishers are resolved." In a letter to the German government and the Commission, the association criticized the "impractical requirements" of the law and the "significant bureaucratic burden on companies".
At the end of 2022, EcoPolitic reported that in the EU want to ban sale of goods for which forests are cut down.
