Smallholder farmers’ views on a proposed delay to a key EU forest conservation law remain mixed as the union’s Parliament is set to vote on a decision Nov. 13 and 14. The EU anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR), which would prevent companies from placing products linked to deforestation in the EU market, is so far scheduled to go into force Jan. 1, 2025. Smallholder associations part of supply chains for products like cocoa, coffee and palm oil from Africa and Indonesia say they are prepared for the date. However, some reports, such as in Honduras, say there exist smallholders who aren’t even aware of the EUDR, let alone prepared to comply. “On the one hand, it gives me some breathing room to ensure that I become fully compliant and ready,” said Onyekachi Anozie Uwalaka, a smallholder farmer who grows oil palm and cacao in Nigeria. For him, the prospect of a one-year delay is bittersweet. “On the other hand, it also means that I might lose the momentum I have built up in terms of making these critical changes.” Trade groups and exporting countries are underlining smallholders’ lack of readiness, and their own, to push for a delay in the law’s implementation. After hearing these calls, the EU Commission introduced the proposal to delay the law by 12 months (for Jan. 1, 2026), a suggestion now awaiting parliamentary approval. If accepted, researchers, smallholder associations and NGOs, such as Fern, Earthsight and Mighty Earth, say they fear it will kill momentum, allow businesses…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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South Africa Today – Environment
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