The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association (ICSA) has described a decision by the European Parliament to propose changes to the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) as “common sense”.
This week, the European Parliament voted to amend and postpone the EUDR which was due to come into force at the end of this year.
The regulation means that companies will only be allowed to sell products in the EU if the supplier provides a “due diligence” statement confirming that the product does not come from deforested land or has led to forest degradation.
The law would cover a range of products including beef, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soy and wood.
The objective of the regulation is to minimise the EU’s contribution to global deforestation and forest degradation and to reduce the EU’s contribution to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and global biodiversity loss.
ICSA president Sean McNamara said the decision to make changes to the EUDR including the creation of a new ‘no risk’ category to minimise the compliance burden on farmers in areas with little or no deforestation makes “common sense”.
“This is a common-sense-step at a time when excessive regulations are making it harder for farmers to stay in business,” McNamara said.
“The introduction of a ‘no risk’ category is a critical move to ensure that farmers in low or zero deforestation regions are not weighed down by unnecessary bureaucracy.
“This is exactly the kind of balanced approach we need more of – one that supports farmers while still delivering on sustainability goals,” he added.
The ICSA has said that if a country has stable or growing forests, it would be logical to simplify the compliance process.
The association added that existing risk classifications – high, standard, and low – do not reflect Ireland’s situation, or the situation in most of Europe, where deforestation is not an issue.
McNamara said that while it is vital for Europe to hold imports to the same standards it expects from its own producers, it is equally important to simplify compliance for those already operating in sustainable, low-risk systems.
“Farmers are fully committed to sustainable practices, but the EUDR must be practical and fair. We need regulations that support our farmers, not ones that threaten to regulate them out of business,” McNamara concluded.