The EU Commission today proposed a postponement of the implementation of the Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). The pulp and paper sector welcomes the announcement which offers an occasion to develop a stronger framework to fight deforestation. The European Parliament and EU Council will still need to confirm the delayed phase-in.

The EU Commission has proposed today a draft amendment to postpone by a year the implementation of a regulation aiming to limit deforestation linked to commodities, not only imported but also produced and exported from the European Union.

Long-expected guidelines to the implementation of the EUDR have now been published in conjunction with the announcement, but the information system build by the EU to enforce the tracking of materials and commodities remains to be completed. A benchmarking system assessing the risk level by country is also still pending. Based on these delays, the EU pulp and paper sector represented by Cepi has been vocal about the need for an adequate transition period for the EUDR.

It is not unusual to see transitional implementation periods applied for EU legislation. The predecessor to the EUDR, the EU timber regulation (EUTR) had a 3-year transition period, for a much simpler system. The EUTR remains in place and ensures no wood from illegal sources is placed on the EU market.

EUDR rules state that companies must ensure that their products were not made on areas deforested after 2020. They require passing tracking information along complex value chains, which is particularly challenging when materials are mixed from different sources as is the case for paper. The delay will now allow for a better implementation of the regulation, and stronger impact on deforestation.

Quote by Jori Ringman, Cepi Director General:

“The EUDR is too important not to get it right. We certainly do not ignore the environmental crisis and the climate emergency, which the EUDR is designed to help solve. Nor is our industry a source of deforestation. From a business angle, deforestation is major reputational risk which for any industry; our industry also depends on healthy forests for our own future.“

“We fully support the objectives of the EUDR, and with this new timeline, we believe that the EU and its trade partners now have a much better chance at finally eradicating deforestation.”

Speakers at the event included Janusz Turski, director general of SPP. Below we provide a link to the broadcast of the meeting (only in Polish):

Consultation of the State Forests with the wood industry

_{Photos: J. Turski, SPP}

The invitation to participate was extended to representatives of the General Directorate of Forestry headed by J. Fijas – Deputy Director General of LP for forestry, companies operating in the value and supply chain of wood raw material, trade unionists, local government officials, regional media, as well as representatives of companies supporting the activities of our Association (Mondi Świecie, MM Kwidzyn, Stora Enso Ostrołęka). The topic of current challenges for the pulp and paper industry was presented by J. Majewski, who presented an insightful assessment of the impact of current forestry and timber policies, based on empirical data and from the perspective of many years of experience in managing the company’s production operations in Kwidzyn.

During the lively debate, the speakers included representatives of the environment related to the activities of our Association: K. Łagoda (Mondi), J. Turski (SPP general director), and M. Ziarkowski – trade unionist at MM Kwidzyn (member of the national secretariat of the NSZZ Solidarity).

In conclusion, the conference stressed that strategic decision-making in the area of forestry and timber industry policy – requires fair and patient consultation with a diverse community of stakeholders, while taking care that the Ministry of the Environment maintains appropriate parity in the selection of bodies in the process of giving its opinion on the changes to be made.

_{Photos: J. Turski, SPP}

FPD is the 3rd edition of the only conference-networking event in PL dedicated to a whole cross-section of the market – companies focused on wood raw material and using wood in their business.

In brief, the Forum is:

• 2 days of conference
• 20+ speakers discussing the most current topics for the industry including: update on LP timber sales rules, #EUDR, #FSC, #PEFC, #ESG, current challenges in the timber industry, cost optimization, how to improve industry PR.
• an excellent lineup of participants – experts representing many industries that use wood in their businesses
• networking dinner on the first day of the Forum
• workshops on the second day of the Forum
• “biforek”, i.e. an evening networking meeting preceding the conference

We invite you together with the organizer @powermeetings.eu to participate and actively discuss during #FPD2024.

See you there!