The EU ends forest clearing. “No deferral for large companies”

The European Commission proposed on Tuesday that anti-deforestation rules would apply to large companies from the new year, but with a six-month exemption period from penalties. Micro and small enterprises will benefit from the one-year deferment. The EC also proposes limiting their duties to a minimum.

The deforestation regulation imposes, among other things, on importers and producers of goods such as wood, rubber, coffee, cocoa, palm oil and soy, the obligation to provide documentation that they do not come from areas deforested for cultivation. This is to prevent products obtained to the detriment of forests from entering the EU market.

Initially, the regulations were to apply from the beginning of 2025. However, due to – as the EC explained – difficulties with the IT system and the amount of data that would need to be entered into it, the entry into force of the regulations was delayed by a year. In September this year Environment Commissioner Jessica Roswall signaled that the EC would propose another postponement because, in her opinion, the system was still not fully ready.

However, the proposal presented by the European Commission on Tuesday means a partial withdrawal of the announcement of another one-year postponement of the entry into force of the regulations. Roswall told journalists that the EC had concluded that two innovations included in the draft amendments to the regulation would allow the launch of an IT system at the beginning of next year.

Large companies will have to adapt to the new obligations provided for in the regulation, but the first half of next year will be treated as an introductory period during which penalties will not be imposed on companies.

Micro and small enterprises will benefit from the one-year deferral – the provisions of the deforestation regulation will come into force from the beginning of 2027. After that time, they will submit a one-time declaration in the IT system instead of regular reports.

UN data shows that between 1990 and 2020, 420 million hectares of forests were lost in the world as a result of deforestation, an area larger than the territory of the European Union.

From Brussels Magdalena Cedro (PAP)

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