Representatives from the UK and EU feed sectors have welcomed the European Commission’s proposal to delay the EU Forestry Regulation (EUDR) for another year.
The EUDR will require importers of soya, plus other commodities, including palm oil, coffee, cocoa, beef and timber, to demonstrate that they have not been produced on deforested land to be sold in the EU.
The regulation was originally intended to apply from 30 December 2024, but towards the end of last year was postponed until to the end of 2025 to give companies and trading partners an additional 12 months to prepare for the new tracing and due diligence requirements. While this is an EU regulation, it will affect the price and availability of compliant soya for UK feed manufacturers.
However, in a letter, EU Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall notified the European Parliament’s Environment Committee chair, Antonio Decaro, and the Danish Presidency, of her intention to delay the rules by a further year.
She highlighted concerns over the functioning of the IT platform needed to manage the vast data volumes required for compliance managing compliance, which she warned could create ‘uncertainty for authorities and operational difficulties for stakeholders’.
“Based on the available information, the Commission’s assessment is that this will very likely lead to the system slowing down to unacceptable levels or even to repeated and long-lasting disruptions, which would negatively impact companies and their possibilities to comply with the EUDR,” she said.
“We still cannot believe that we can really get this without disruption. We need the time to combat the risk with the load of information in the IT system.
“In view of this, the Commission is considering a postponement of the entry into application of the EUDR, currently foreseen for December 2025 30, for one year.”
She stated that the proposal is not influenced by complaints from trade partners such as the United States, Japan, or Malaysia, nor by recent trade talks with Indonesia.
The decision would need to be ratified by the European Parliament and Council. Speaking at the Council this week, the commissioner said she would engage in discussions with both bodies before formally announcing a delay, which is widely expected to be approved.
She also left the door open to ‘simplifying’ the regulation beyond the delay, noting that simplification efforts will continue in discussions with EU ministers.
The parliament member leading negotiations on the file, Germany’s Christine Schneider (CDU), welcomed the move.
“For a long time, I have been advocating for a practical implementation of the Deforestation Regulation,” she said. “However, the renewed postponement clearly shows: the problems run deeper and cannot be solved by further transitional periods or non-binding guidelines”.
AIC welcome
The Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) described the proposed one-year delay as a ‘pragmatic and necessary step to avoid disruption and ensure EU supply chain readiness’
AIC noted that EUDR is set to apply in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Windsor Framework.
The European Compound Feed Manufacturers’ Federation (FEFAC), also welcomed the proposed delay, citing insufficient availability of EUDR-compliant soy to meet the EU’s annual demand of over 30 million tonnes.
FEFAC urged the European Commission, the Council, and the European Parliament to include EUDR in the Omnibus simplification package to reduce administrative burdens and safeguard essential soy supplies for the EU feed and livestock sector.
AIC will discuss the implications with its members and supply chain partners and consider any impact on the supply of responsibly sourced soya through to the end of 2026.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) described the proposed delay as ‘embarrassing’, however. “It would lead to massive stranded costs for all those companies already invested in compliance, and to a loss of face of Commission President Von der Leyen,” it said.
EUDR does not apply in the UK, which is developing a similar Forest Risk Commodity Regulation.