The EU will delay the anti-deforestation law for another year
Brussels had already delayed the law for a year, but that hadn't quelled opposition from the industry and trading partners such as Brazil, Indonesia, and the United States, who argue that complying with the regulations would be costly and harm their exports to Europe.
Roswall explained to the press that the postponement was necessary to address concerns about the readiness of the computer systems needed to comply with the law. The postponement is not related to US concerns about the regulations, she said.
"We're concerned about the IT system, given the amount of information we input into it. (…) This will also give us time to analyze the various risks", she said.
The EU deforestation law was due to come into force on December 30 and would have required operators selling products such as soy, beef, and palm oil in EU markets to provide evidence that their products do not cause deforestation.
This world-first measure aims to end the 10% of global deforestation caused by the consumption of imported EU products, but it is a politically controversial element of the European environmental agenda.
As part of its trade agreement with US President Donald Trump, the EU pledged to work to address US producers' concerns about the regulation. The US pulp and paper industry has previously demanded that US products be exempt from the rules.
EU countries, including Poland and Austria, have said that European producers cannot meet their traceability standards.
In a letter to the chairman of the European Parliament's Environment Committee, seen by Reuters, Roswall said the Commission feared the IT system risked "slowing down to unacceptable levels," which could disrupt trade.
Environmentalists criticized the EU decision.
“Every day this law is delayed means more forests destroyed, more fires, and more extreme weather”, said Nicole Polsterer, an activist with the environmental group Fern.
The European Parliament and EU Member States must approve the delay.
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