The European Union’s anti-deforestation law is being pushed back again. On Wednesday (26 November), the European Parliament voted to delay the regulation’s entry into force for a second time, shifting compliance for large companies to 30 December 2026 and for small and micro firms to 30 June 2027. The vote passed by 402 to 250, with the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) joining two far and extreme-right groups, Patriots for Europe and Europe of Sovereign Nations, to secure the outcome.
Another delay
The EU deforestation regulation (EUDR), adopted in 2023, requires importers of soy, beef, coffee, cocoa, palm oil and related products to prove their supply chains do not contribute to deforestation. Its implementation has been held up by a mix of technical and political problems. The central IT platform that companies must use to upload geolocation data is still incomplete. Member states warn that the system risks being overloaded once millions of operators begin filing declarations. In late October, most EU ambassadors asked the European Commission to delay the deadline for all companies, citing low preparedness among both firms and national authorities.
Governments are also pushing for the rules to be simplified. The Commission has already proposed changes that would ease some data requirements and exempt downstream operators from filing their own due diligence declarations. Several countries, most notably Germany and France, however, want a broader overhaul. The Parliament’s decision reflects that pressure: MEPs not only backed a delay but also asked the Commission to review the legislation by April 2026 as part of the wider simplification and deregulation agenda. That review could alter key parts of the law before any operator is required to comply.
Politics
The vote highlights growing political strain in Brussels. The EPP’s choice to work with far-right groups has frustrated the Socialists & Democrats, Renew and the Greens, which together with the EPP have long formed the core of the Parliament’s pro-EU majority. Those groups argued for a compromise: keeping the current timeline for large operators while giving smaller firms more time and examining their specific compliance problems in parallel. The proposal was rejected.
Businesses now face continued uncertainty. Some large companies have already invested in systems to meet the original 2024 deadline and then the postponed 2025 deadline. Others have held back, expecting further delays. The shifting dates and the prospect of a pre-implementation review make planning harder for both groups.
EU consumption accounts for roughly 10% of global deforestation, with soy and palm oil making up more than two-thirds of that share, the Parliament’s research service estimated.
