The EU’s deforestation regulation (EUDR) is facing another hurdle this week, as mounting political pressure points toward a one-year delay across the board.
The Council has yet to agree on a common position regarding the Commission’s recent proposal to tweak the regulation – but all signs suggest ministers are preparing to ask for more time.
Austria’s push to “stop the clock” on EUDR implementation has gained traction, securing the backing of 15 countries at Wednesday morning’s Environment Council – including Italy and Poland.
Spain stood alone in voicing clear support for the current timeline, while the Netherlands said it was still assessing how potential changes could affect businesses that have already invested heavily in compliance.
Clock ticking
Amid a tight deadline – an agreement needs to be reached by mid-December – and with capitals still digesting the Commission’s technical changes, a delay looks increasingly inevitable.
Meanwhile, the European Parliament is speeding things up.
Coordinators in the environment committee (ENVI) voted on Tuesday to apply the urgency procedure to fast-track the proposed amendments.
The plenary will confirm the decision next week, with a final vote on the text expected during the week of 24 November. ENVI MEPs are also seeking to summon Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall to defend her proposal before the committee next week.
What’s on the table?
Exactly how the EUDR might be amended remains unclear. In addition to a blanket one-year delay – not only for small companies, as originally proposed, but for all operators – deeper revisions could be postponed to a later stage.
Some member states are also reviving the idea of designating certain countries as “zero-risk” for deforestation – a concept first floated by the centre-right EPP last year but shot down by both the Commission and Council at the time.
Roswall, however, is not on board. She said the creation of such a category would be lengthy and divisive. “I am not even sure how many countries could realistically qualify as having zero risk of deforestation … including inside the EU,” she added.
In Parliament, Renew Europe and the Socialists back the Commission’s proposal as it stands, while the EPP vowed to reintroduce the new risk category.
Industry frustrations
The food industry’s major players do not appear in step with the Council’s demands. While a longer period of implementation period could be welcomed, many stress that efforts and investments to meet the rules have already been made.
Francesco Tramontin, vice president for global public affairs at Ferrero, said at an event hosted by Renew MEP Pascal Canfin on Wednesday that a further delay would “reward the laggards”.
“Traceability is non-negotiable in our sector … don’t believe anyone who tells you it’s not possible,” he added.
Far from demanding new “risk” categories, big food companies are more focused on legislators getting technicalities right – including those newly proposed by the Commission.
The European Cocoa Association warned at the event that the bloc executive’s revised text contains “serious flaws,” including wording on a six-month grace period that could make compliance checks retroactive.
The group also flagged that a supposed “simplification” for downstream operators – allowing the reuse of reference numbers from initial due diligence statements – could actually make things worse, with thousands of numbers being passed along for a single chocolate bar.
“We are eight weeks from the beginning of the year, and we don’t know what to hope for,” said Markus Pfannkuch, co-CEO of Precious Woods.
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