On Wednesday 24 July, EuroCommerce sent a letter to the European Commission asking the EU to postpone the entry into force of the regulation on combating deforestation (see EUROPE 13441/20), scheduled to take effect on 30 December 2024. Several members of the World Trade Organization (Brazil, Indonesia, Ecuador, New Zealand, Australia and the United States) followed suit at the end of May.
EuroCommerce, a representative of the retail and wholesale sector, criticised the Commission for leaving many questions “so far [...] unanswered”. It is hoped that the rules will be clarified on a number of practical aspects, such as the system for labelling the origin of products.
“A minimum of 6 months” are requested for the transition period, once the IT tools for data entry are ready. EuroCommerce stresses the large number and variety of products sold by retailers and wholesalers that are affected by the regulation on imported deforestation: cocoa, coffee, soya, palm oil, wood, beef, rubber, etc. They will be banned from being marketed in the EU if they come from deforested land after December 2020. (Original version in French by Florent Servia)