Europe needs to put its money where its mouth is to stop deforestation in South-east Asia 

A NEW European Union (EU) regulation will come into force this year that bans the import of products made from agricultural commodities such as palm oil, timber, coffee and rubber grown on recently deforested land.

While there is broad consensus among international environmental groups that this new regulation is a significant step forward in the fight against deforestation and biodiversity loss, it has triggered protests by some palm oil and rubber farmers in Malaysia and Indonesia.

The regulation means that from 2024, the EU will require companies and smallholder farmers working in Indonesia, Malaysia and other parts of the Global South to certify that their agricultural products are not linked to recent deforestation, and to provide data to prove it.