With the real political fights already settled, negotiators from the European Parliament and Council are poised to clinch an easy deal Thursday on tweaks to the EU’s deforestation rules.
The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) should have entered into force by December this year and requires companies to demonstrate that certain products sold in the EU – including cocoa, coffee, soy, palm oil, rubber, livestock, and timber – did not contribute to deforestation.
Thursday evening’s meeting will be the only round of inter-institutional talks needed to seal a one-year delay and include a clause allowing the legislation to be reopened for further changes by April next year.
After EU governments signed off on their position – which was heavily shaped by Germany – the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) moved to mirror it, aiming to fast-track talks and avoid slipping past the December implementation deadline.
Far-right bloc in EU Parliament moves to delay, review anti-deforestation rules
The European Parliament has largely backed changes to the EU’s anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR) that mirror…
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The decision to reopen the file was prompted by Commission warnings that technical snags could derail the planned December 2025 rollout. Enforcement had already been pushed back once, in 2024, after a similarly frantic pre-Christmas round of negotiations.
This time, however, MEPs and member states pushed well beyond the Commission’s proposal. In their negotiating positions, in addition to the extra year for all companies to comply, both institutions call for a new impact assessment by April 2026, which could pave the way for yet another legislative reopening.
That demand split the pro-EU camp. The Socialist and Renew negotiators, Delara Burkhardt and Pascal Canfin, failed to strike a deal with the EPP after multiple rounds of talks, opposing a review of the law before it even enters into force.
To show discontent with the right-wing alliance, the lead negotiators for the S&D, Renew, and the Greens/EFA won’t be present at tomorrow’s meeting, two parliamentary staffers confirmed.
At last week’s plenary vote, the EPP instead turned to the right-wing bloc – including Patriots for Europe and the European Conservatives and Reformists – to push through several amendments. Some of the changes were ultimately also backed by 40% of Renew MEPs, who broke with Canfin’s line.
The only sticking point that is still dividing Parliament and Council is that MEPs want to carve out an exemption for printed books, newspapers, photographs, and other products from the printing sector. However, a parliamentary staffer close to the negotiations said that even if the Council doesn’t accept it, it won’t be a dealbreaker for MEPs.
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CORRECTION: This story has been amended to better align the excerpt with the text