Producers in Malaysia’s palm oil industry and Vietnam’s coffee sector on Thursday welcomed the European Union’s (EU) decision to delay the implementation of anti-deforestation laws.
The one-year deadline sparked protests from environmental groups, but the law faced strong opposition from many governments and companies. They criticized the law, which seeks to ban the importation of products that cause deforestation, because of the confusing rules and complicated documentation requirements that they say will further burden small farmers.
The EU’s decision to delay entry into force is a relief, said Trinh Duc Minh, head of the Buon Ma Thuot Coffee Association. The extension of the deadline is necessary and reasonable, he told AFP, although he said that the price of coffee has risen as the company builds up before the deadline may now fall.
Nguyen Xuan Loi, CEO of Vietnamese coffee exporter An Thai Group, welcomed the news as a positive step. In fact, Vietnam is very much in control of the issue of deforestation, he told AFP.
There are almost no other violations. According to Global Forest Watch, the loss of primary forests in Vietnam has decreased from the peak of 2016, but the country will still lose about 16,500 ha in 2023, with deforestation being the main reason. .
EU imports accounted for 16% of global trade-related deforestation in 2017, according to WWF. When the law was adopted in 2023, it was hailed as a major step forward for nature and climate protection.
It requires exporters of cocoa, soy, timber, livestock, palm oil, rubber, coffee – and products derived from these products – to demonstrate that their goods have not been taken from deforested land after December 2020. “Helpful”
Countries including Malaysia and Indonesia have opposed the new law with strong criticism as the end of December approaches, with Brazil and the United States among those voicing their concerns.
The Malaysian Palm Oil Council welcomed the proposed postponement as a victory for common sense. The decision is a welcome relief for all businesses that have shown the need to postpone, said the association’s director Belvinder Kaur Sron.
Over the past two years, Malaysia has continued to provide evidence… that the December 30, 2024 implementation date is unworkable and that the EU system is not ready, the council added in a statement. He called on the EU to respond to the outstanding issues, including on crime for minors, clear labels and the adoption of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil Standard.
In Indonesia, the country’s leading palm oil industry welcomed the delay. “Our calls have not been heard,” said President Eddy Martono, who urged the EU to accept Indonesia’s principles of cooperation and recognize its efforts to combat deforestation.
Palm oil is one of Indonesia’s largest exports, but it is also a major driver of deforestation. The country will lose nearly 300,000 hectares of primary forest in 2023, an increase from the previous year, but still below the peak of 2016, according to Global Forest Watch.
Indonesian environmentalists have warned that the EU is delaying the risk of even leading to uncontrolled deforestation. We cannot imagine how a year’s delay will lead to land clearing or deforestation in West Kalimantan and other regions such as Papua, said Uli Arta Siagian of the Indonesian environmental group WALHI.
Uli acknowledged the difficulties in implementing the law, but said there was no guarantee that a one-year delay would solve them. It should be implemented, then the EU can see what needs to be fixed, he told AFP.
For us, this decision is disappointing.
