New European Union law makes Brazilian exports more expensive

The European Union announced this Tuesday (6) a new law that will make exports from Brazil and some other countries more expensive.

Under the new rule, exporting companies will have to demonstrate that the soy, beef, wood, coffee and other commodities they sell to the European market have no connection with deforestation anywhere in the world.

These companies will have to submit official declarations proving that their supply chains are not linked to the destruction of any biome before shipping their products to the European Union.

Companies will have to demonstrate when and where the commodities were produced, always in areas free of deforestation – meaning that they were not grown on land deforested after 2020. They must also show that the rights of indigenous peoples were respected during the production of the goods .

Non-compliance can result in fines of up to 4% of the company’s revenue, in addition to a ban on new exports.

This whole process will require companies and authorities in exporting countries and with problems of forest deforestation, such as Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia, to create a whole new tracking and compliance system demonstrating in detail the origin of the products.

This measure will create new costs, increasing the prices of exported commodities.

The novelty will impact even large companies producing and exporting commodities that are known not to operate in deforestation areas, as they will also have to prove the origin of their production.

The European Parliament’s chief negotiator, Christophe Hansen, said the measure was intended to help preserve forests around the world and combat climate change, as deforestation is one of the main sources of greenhouse gas emissions.

Negotiators from European Union countries and the European Parliament closed the deal on the law on Tuesday. Now, the bloc’s countries will have to formally approve the legislation before it comes into force.

According to the Reuters news agency, Brazil and other countries such as Indonesia, Colombia and Malaysia have criticized the European plan, saying that the rules are cumbersome and expensive.

Many critics believe that measures like this simply mask the well-known protectionism of some European countries that have historically defended their farmers.

One of the best known cases is that of France, which gives high subsidies to farmers in the country.

This Tuesday, French President Emmanuel Macron celebrated the new law on his social media account.

“We have been working towards this and France has shown the way: the European Union prohibits the import of products derived from deforestation. We are the first in the world to do so! The battle for climate and biodiversity is accelerating,” he wrote.