How the EU can achieve deforestation-free supply chains

By Joann de Zegher

DEFORESTATION, which accounts for roughly 25 per cent of global greenhouse-gas emissions, is primarily driven by commodity production for global markets. Legislation recently enacted by the European Union (EU) aims to curb deforestation by banning the import of commodities and products linked to it. The measure represents an important step forward, but gaps in critical data are set to undermine its effectiveness.

The new law requires companies to provide a due diligence report detailing the “country of production”, “geographic coordinates… of all the plots of land where the relevant commodities and products were produced”, the “time range of production”, and “verifiable information that the relevant commodities and products are deforestation-free”. In other words, companies must prove that their supply chains are deforestation-free.