WDK leader: EUDR "zigzag course" harming the economy

Frankfurt, Germany – A proposed delay in the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) has added further uncertainty throughout the rubber industry, according to WDK president Michael Klein.

The EU Commission's proposal to postpone the enforcement of the regulation by 12 months (ERJ report) still has to be approved by the European Parliament, said the German rubber industry association leader.

As a result, Klein said the industry now has to adopt a “two-pronged approach”, with companies preparing for the regulation to come into force 1 Jan 2025 or to be postponed by a year.

And in the event of a postponement, those who have prepared for the regulation “in an exemplary manner” would be left behind, he added.

With the EUDR, Klein said, the EU Commission has “become a victim of its own ambitions.”

To begin with, he explained: “A far too tight” timeframe was unnecessarily set for the implementation, disregarding the complexities of natural rubber supply chains.

“Then the answer to urgent questions promised for March 2024 was delayed by more than half a year, and even after that, many points remain unresolved.” 

And now, continued Klein, “a postponement is planned, for which the necessary approval of the European Parliament is not even secured."

Businesses, he emphasised, need planning certainty, and the EUDR developments have not provided that. 

"The EU regulation for deforestation-free supply chains is a prime example of how a legislative zigzag course harms the economy,” said the WDK leader.

While supporting for the aims of the EUDR, Klein stressed that requirements of the legislations should be met in “a practical manner.”

All questions, he said, should be clarified and all technical systems should work at least six months before the final entry into force of the regulation.