Germany joins the criticism of the new European anti-deforestation regulation. The Minister of Agriculture, Cem Ozdemir, asked the European Commission to postpone the entry into force of the text, scheduled for the end of the year. “Companies need enough time to prepare,” said the minister of the Green party, specifying that Berlin had asked the European Union (EU) to delay the entry into force of the regulation “by half a year”, until July 1, 2025.
The Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz also expressed concern on Thursday about the ability of companies to be able to apply this text. Speaking to the German Association of Digital and Newspaper Publishers, the head of government said he had discussed these difficulties with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, insisting that “the regulation be suspended until the issues raised have been clarified”.

A measure that worries the United States and Brazil
Promulgated in 2023, this European regulation against deforestation plans to ban from the end of 2024 the marketing in the EU of a series of products (cocoa, coffee, soy, palm oil, wood, beef, rubber, leather, furniture, paper, etc.) if they come from land deforested after December 2020. Professionals in the paper, chocolate, furniture or hygiene product sectors using palm oil would be particularly affected by the new regulation.
Importing companies, responsible for their supply chain, will have to prove traceability through geolocation data provided by farmers, combined with satellite photos. This week, Brazil also asked the EU to postpone the entry into force of the regulation, just as the United States had requested in June. The text has also raised serious concerns from African, Asian and South American countries, worried about additional costs for their farmers, ranchers and foresters.