The European Commission has proposed an extra 12 months' "phasing-in time" to implement the bloc's EU deforestation regulation (EUDR). The commission also published the outlines of the EUDR methodology to classify countries as low, standard or high-risk. It said a large majority of countries worldwide will be classified as "low risk".
The commission said that three months ahead of the intended implementation at the end of this year, "several global partners" have repeatedly expressed concerns about preparedness and that European stakeholder preparation is "also uneven". It added that the delay in "no way puts into question the objectives or the substance of the law".
German agriculture minister Cem Ozdemir last month called for the commission to "urgently" postpone the EUDR's implementation by six months. The commission can "create all the necessary conditions on its own" for a delay, without renegotiating the EUDR, he said. Parliament's largest centre-right EPP group has also pushed to delay the regulation.
Officials published "additional" guidance documents and a "stronger" international co-operation framework for global stakeholders, EU states and third countries. The change requires approval from EU states and European Parliament to make the EUDR applicable from 30 December 2025 for large companies. The date would be pushed back to 30 June 2026 for small firms.
A group of major firms such as Ferrero, Mars Wrigley, Mondelez International and Nestle called for no reopening of the EUDR's "substance". The group, joined by several campaign organisations including Fairtrade International, said renegotiating aspects of the EUDR would only increase uncertainty and jeopardise the investments made for application.
