If your business uses leather, rubber, wood, beef, palm oil, soy, or paper, then you may need to comply with the EU Deforestation Directive (EUDR), a new rule intended to ensure that no goods traded in the EU contribute to global deforestation. Even if a company does not operate directly in the EU, you may be asked to supply data and provide assurance that your products do not come from deforested areas if you supply EU-based companies.

The directive, which was passed in 2023, is intended to reduce the EU’s contribution to global forest degradation. It is part of a broader action plan first outlined in the 2019 Commission Communication on Stepping up EU Action to Protect and Restore the World’s Forests. The new directive was supposed to come into force on Dec. 30, but the EU Parliament agreed on Thursday to delay it by 12 months to give those in scope more time to prepare. Micro and small enterprises will have until June 30, 2026.

The Official Journal of the European Union stated when the directive was passed that “deforestation and forest degradation contribute to the global climate crisis in multiple ways. … Deforestation alone accounts for 11 percent of greenhouse gas emissions.”