EU Regulation on deforestation-free products

How to stop EU imports and consumption from causing deforestation?

On 29 June 2023, the EU Regulation on deforestation-free products (EUDR) entered into force.

It focusses on seven high-risk commodities, wood, soy, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, beef and rubber and the products derived from it like chocolate, leather and paper and will prohibit companies from putting products on the EU market unless they are deforestation-free, degradation-free and legally produced. Non-compliance would lead to significant penalties.

It represents an historic first in the fight against forest destruction. As the EU is the second biggest global importer of products that cause deforestation, the EUDR has the potential to drastically reduce forest loss and carbon emissions caused by the EU. However, the Regulation’s success now depends on effective implementation and enforcement.

How can the EU make the Deforestation Regulation work effectively? What are the next steps?

For the EU to actually reduce deforestation and human rights abuses it will need to also incentivise producer countries to tackle the root causes of deforestation, such as poor forest governance and unclear land tenure.

Success will depend on supporting measures and effective implementation and enforcement, in consultation and partnership with the producer countries and local communities who depend the most on these forests for their survival and livelihoods.

This work should be guided by the EUDR’s proposed Strategic Framework for Partnerships, which is set to include mechanisms and roadmaps to facilitate producer countries’ transition to sustainable agricultural production. Negotiation and implementation of these partnerships must include Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and smallholders (to ensure they don’t lose out to larger companies).

In addition, EU Member States must give Competent Authorities sufficient resources to check companies’ compliance.

The EU is assessing whether to extend the scope of the Regulation to other landscapes and Other Wooded Land and will then consider increasing the included commodities and products.

To be truly effective the EU will also need to work closely with major consumer countries like the United States, China and India.

Find out more

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Find out why partnerships should accompany the Regulation

Read our report

Discover Member States' obligations

Together with +150 other NGOs, we explain what EU Member States need to do now to implement the Regulation.

Read our statement

Get to know producer countries' perspectives

Find out what of some of Fern's global partners think about the EUDR:

Ghana, Liberia, the Congo Basin, Brazil, Republic of Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Vietnam and Indonesia

FERN’S WORK ON THIS ISSUE

What do Fern and our partners want?

We want EU regulations that reduce human rights violations and deforestation, improve forest governance, and have a positive impact for smallholders.

What are we doing?

We influence - and where necessary trigger - EU policies such as the EUDR and linked initiatives, creating space for local civil society actors including Indigenous Peoples, local communities, ethnic minorities and smallholders, to be heard.

What has been achieved so far?

Fern convinced the EU to regulate against imported deforestation

In March 2015, Fern Board member David Kaimowitz told a conference, that Europe’s supermarkets had been converted into crime scenes as tropical forests were being cleared illegally for soy, beef, palm oil and other commodities and ending up on Europe’s supermarket shelves.

The seemingly utopic aim was to encourage the EU to pass a Deforestation Regulation. Passing the EU Timber Regulation had been difficult - but the timber industry is minor compared with the huge multinational corporations trading in beef, palm oil and soybeans.

Yet it has happened! Thanks to the hard work of Fern, and its allies and organisations in Europe and the global South, we now have the EUDR which holds companies to account for deforestation associated with seven key commodities, and included a commitment to partner with producer countries to lower deforestation levels across the board.

Read more about our achievements or David Kaimowitz’s latest interview.

Talk to us

Nicole Polsterer

Responsable de la campagne Production et Consommation durable

nicole.polsterer@fern.org

Indra Van Gisbergen

Responsable de la campagne Forêts et Consommation

indra@fern.org

Julia Christian

Responsable de la campagne Forêts

julia@fern.org

Alexandra Benjamin

Responsable de la campagne gouvernance forestière

alexandra@fern.org

Perrine Fournier

Responsable de la campagne Commerce

perrine@fern.org

Frequently asked questions

What are EU definitions of deforestation and forest degradation?

The EU Deforestation Regulation does not provide its own definitions of deforestation and forest degradation. Instead, it uses adapted versions of the internationally accepted definitions established by the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).

Deforestation means forest that has been converted to agricultural use after 31 December 2020. Logging in concessions can therefore never qualify as deforestation – even if a large area has been clearcut- but it could, however, qualify as degradation.

Degradation refers to structural changes in forest cover after 31 December 2020, such as the conversion of primary or naturally regenerating forest into plantation forest or other wooded land. The definition of degradation will be reviewed after a period of five years.

What does the EU Deforestation Regulation mean for companies and producer countries?

Under the EUDR, any company that places wood, soy, palm oil, coffee, cocoa, beef or rubber onto the EU market (or exports them from it) must check that they have not caused deforestation or forest degradation or violations of producer country laws, and state that there is no - or only a negligible - risk of non-compliance. Companies will need to consider issues related to Indigenous Peoples, land claims, and supply chain complexity.

Member States’ Competent Authorities will check for compliance and companies that are found to be in breach of the Regulation can be fined, denied market access or have their products confiscated.

Each EU Member State will appoint a Competent Authority responsible for conducting compliance checks, while producer countries or regions will be categorised as being standard, low, or high-risk. products from high-risk countries or regions will face higher scrutiny, with a higher percentage of goods and companies checked by Competent Authorities.

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