The German Minister for Federal Agriculture, Alois Rainer of the CSU party, is spearheading a push to significantly weaken the European Union’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), raising concerns over the efficacy and political motivations behind the initiative. Rainer argues the regulation places an “massive burden” on the German economy, despite the absence of deforestation within Germany itself and is actively lobbying the EU Commission for the introduction of a “zero-risk” variant.
The EUDR aims to prevent the destruction of forests for products sold within the EU, targeting commodities like palm oil and soy, particularly those linked to livestock farming, which account for over two-thirds of global deforestation attributed to EU consumption. Projections indicate that EU consumption is responsible for roughly 10% of worldwide deforestation, a figure underscored by FAO estimates of 420 million hectares of forest lost between 1990 and 2020 – an area exceeding the size of the European Union. Deforestation is globally estimated to contribute 10-15% of greenhouse gas emissions.
Rainer’s stance is perplexing given the concerning state of German forests themselves. While the total forested area in Germany has recently increased, the overall health of the woodland is deteriorating rapidly, with only one in five trees currently deemed healthy. Worryingly, German forests are now releasing more CO2 into the atmosphere than they absorb, effectively transforming from a carbon sink into a net emitter.
The German Ministry of Agriculture intends to push for a postponement of the EUDR’s implementation and advocate for the creation of a zero-risk category, potentially diluting the regulation’s impact and creating loopholes for potentially unsustainable practices. While acknowledging the necessity of addressing deforestation, critics argue that Rainer’s proposal demonstrates a prioritization of short-term economic interests over long-term environmental sustainability and contradicts broader EU efforts to reduce bureaucracy. The impending revision of the EUDR, scheduled for presentation by the EU Commission next week, will be a critical test of the bloc’s commitment to tackling deforestation and its associated environmental consequences. The move also highlights a potential power struggle within the EU, pitting agricultural lobbies resistant to stringent environmental regulations against the broader objective of achieving climate neutrality.