Fires, clear-cutting, illegal and unsustainable logging and deforestation are putting forests and other vital ecosystems like grasslands and peatlands at risk.

This devastation of nature is happening fast - and it is directly connected to the meat, dairy, palm oil, coffee and chocolate we eat in Europe. From the Amazon to the Asian rainforests, the EU is responsible for more than 10% of global forest destruction.

The EU has the power to help stop this destruction: It can do this by passing a new law that would stop products linked to the destruction of nature from ending up on the EU’s supermarket shelves. 

Through the #Together4Forests campaign, 1.2 million people demanded a strong, new EU law to protect the world’s forests and other ecosystems, and fed straight into the European Commission’s public consultation on deforestation. Together, they sent a powerful message: It’s time for the EU to stop being part of the problem, and become part of the solution.

Following the EC proposal for a new EU Deforestation law in November 2021, MEPs in the Environment Committee of the European Parliament have sent in their proposals for changes (amendments). These will be discussed and agreed upon until the vote in the Committee on the 11/12 July. A vote on the final text in plenary is scheduled for the week of September 12. In parallel, environment ministers are discussing key elements of the law and the next Environment Council meeting will be held on 28 June. 

Meanwhile, across Europe, people are getting in touch with MEPs, to make sure that the law will not be watered down. You too can join the #Together4Forests movement now or stay up to date with the latest news here. 

To further the EU’s policy agenda on illegal logging, deforestation and forest degradation, we work on two important policy areas:
 
Illegal and unsustainable logging: WWF works to ensure that all wood products on the EU market are legally sourced. To achieve this we are working to make sure that both the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) and the EU Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) are properly implemented and enforced.
 
Addressing the EU’s role in global deforestation and ecosystem destruction: WWF is advocating for strong EU action on deforestation and forest degradation but also on ecosystem conversion and degradation, including a new EU deforestation law. Other measures also include strengthening cooperation with other countries producing and consuming commodities to address the underlying drivers of nature destruction and human rights violations.