Under the new agreement of the EU countries, all exporting companies are required to confirm that the goods do not affect the deforestation of the world’s forests.
On Tuesday, December 6, EU legislators signed an agreement that will ban the import of products that contribute to deforestation around the world.
This is a preliminary agreement that has yet to be adopted by the EU Parliament. According to it, the import into the EU of goods that can lead to deforestation and destruction of forests around the world will be banned.
Companies importing goods must document that the product complies with the rules in force in the country of origin, including in the field of human rights and the protection of indigenous peoples.
Forests on all continents are threatened by deforestation due to logging or agriculture, including the production of soybeans and palm oil. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Program estimates that 420 million hectares of forest have been destroyed between 1990 and 2020, more than the area of the EU.
The bloc’s agreement of 27 countries is “a first in the world”.
“Europe will close its doors to everyday products that have the biggest impact on global deforestation unless their importers can demonstrate with supporting documents that they do not originate in deforested areas,”
said Pascal Canfin, head of the European Parliament’s environment committee.
