EU deforestation regulation postponed

The European deforestation regulation, which was supposed to come into force on 30 December, is also a major topic in the pet industry. Now, EU Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall has informed the Chair of the European Parliament's Environment Committee and the Danish Presidency of her intention to postpone the start date by one year to the end of 2026 – and to 30 June 2027 for small and medium-sized enterprises. The regulation was actually supposed to apply from 2024. It initially requires large companies to prove the deforestation-free origin of certain products such as coffee, cocoa, soy and beef. Otherwise, products may not be imported or will be detained by customs.

Providing this proof requires a great deal of effort, and many are surprised that we are now back where we were a year ago. The EU cites IT problems as the reason for the delay. There are concerns about the functioning of the IT platform used to manage the data.