Governments from across the European Union today adopted a historic new law which will ensure that a raft of commodities linked to deforestation and forest degradation won’t be able to enter the EU market unless proven to be sustainably sourced.
The green light from EU national governments means that by end of next year, imports of palm oil, cattle, soy, coffee, cocoa, timber and rubber will have to comply with strict traceability obligations and evidence must show that they have not been grown on deforested or degraded land.
It’s the first law of its kind in the world, and a historic blueprint for the approaches that other markets should look at to help preserve the world’s forests – which are essential in the fight against climate breakdown and biodiversity loss.
Now the first milestone towards deforestation-free supply chains has been achieved, it’s time to ensure that the European Union can fully end its role in forest destruction – which means cutting the money pipeline to deforesting businesses. This is the final piece of the puzzle.
By 
CVD 