On the other hand, with the entry into force of the European Deforestation-free products Regulation (Eudr), the European Union makes it clear that trade between our agro-processing industry and raw material producing countries must henceforth be conducted even more rigorously in terms of controls and certifications. With the Eudr, Brussels’ priority becomes ‘to reduce the Union’s consumption footprint on the soil and to encourage the consumption of products from supply chains that do not contribute to deforestation’. The commodities covered by the regulation are cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, soya and timber. These commodities are strategic for the continent’s agri-food supply chain: they are worth around EUR 1 trillion.

Giving up these imported products is not an option. Coffee or cocoa cannot be grown in Europe. And equally it must be clear that the producing countries themselves are already often in line with EU directives. Going back to the Wri, in fact, the palm oil supply chain certified as sustainable goes against the global emergency. Indonesia, Malaysia, Colombia and Guatemala, the global market leaders, have encouraged the adoption of anti-deforestation policies, embracing sustainability as a challenge to introduce technological innovations and allocate pro-environmental investments.