Imports and exports to be banned! The European Union reached a provisional agreement

In Europe, environmentalists are moving to protect forests. The European Union reached a provisional agreement Wednesday to ban imports and exports of goods that may be linked to deforestation, the European Commission said.

According to the agreement, the commodities covered include coffee, cocoa, soybeans, palm oil, beef, wood and furniture. If these goods and their supply chains are linked to practices such as deforestation, they will not be allowed to be imported into the EU for sale or exported from the EU.

To ensure the agreement is implemented, companies will need to document that their goods and supply chains are not involved in deforestation, and provide precise geographic information about where the goods are coming from. Violators will face fines. At the same time, the EU will establish a risk assessment system to assess the risk of deforestation and forest degradation caused by imports, and simplify customs clearance procedures for products from low-risk countries or regions. In addition, the EU will work with other countries to build greener supply chains for goods.

According to the European Union, the world lost 3.75 million hectares of forest last year, the equivalent of losing 10 football pitches every minute. The agreement has yet to be formally approved by EU countries and the European Parliament before it can take effect. After that, companies will have an adjustment period ranging from 18 to 24 months, depending on their size.

It is understood that the European Commission proposed the relevant agreement in November 2021, which immediately attracted wide attention. Some environmentalists think it will make companies more environmentally conscious. Industry insiders also pointed out that the agreement will have a big impact on countries such as Brazil, Colombia and Indonesia, which mainly export related goods, because of the high cost of implementation and not conducive to the development of free trade.

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