UK moves to ban goods linked to illegal deforestation

The UK government has proposed new rules requiring businesses dealing in commodities such as palm oil, soy, cocoa, coffee, timber, rubber and cattle to assess their supply chains and ensure their products are not linked to illegal deforestation overseas.

The proposal, announced on Wednesday by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, is part of efforts to prevent everyday products sold in Great Britain from driving illegal forest clearance in other countries.

Under the proposed measures, businesses handling commodities associated with deforestation would face mandatory due diligence obligations to establish that their supply chains were not contributing to illegal forest loss.

The government said the measures were being proposed through a consultation launched on Wednesday, November 11, which would seek views from businesses, environmental organisations and international stakeholders.

It said the consultation would include proposals for mandatory due diligence obligations under existing legal powers, including those contained in the Environment Act 2021, as well as measures to strengthen the UK Timber Regulation.

The announcement comes as senior politicians from around the world, including the UK Foreign Secretary, gather for a Leaders’ Summit Event on Forests at the COP31 climate conference in Antalya.

According to the government, the UK’s consumption of goods associated with deforestation was linked to approximately 29,000 hectares of forest loss worldwide in 2023, an area about one and a half times the size of Manchester.

It said the consumption also contributed to 9.4 million tonnes of carbon emissions.

The government explained that commodities such as soy and palm oil were widely used in everyday products sold in the UK, including chocolate, cooking oils, toiletries and cosmetics, but their production could involve the illegal seizure or clearance of forested land.

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Environment Secretary, Dame Angela Eagle, said protecting forests was essential to tackling climate change.

She said, “We cannot tackle climate change without acting to protect the world’s forests, which contain some of our planet’s most valuable wildlife and habitats.

“British consumers want to feel confident that the everyday goods they buy are not driving devastating illegal deforestation abroad, and so we are stepping in to give them that certainty.

“This government is determined to stamp illegal deforestation out of UK supply chains for good and show global leadership on tackling the climate and nature crises.”

The government said the proposed approach would support the UK’s commitment, made alongside 144 other countries at the 2021 COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030.

It added that it wanted the regime in Great Britain to operate alongside the existing arrangements in Northern Ireland to minimise unnecessary administrative burdens, protect the UK internal market and support export-led growth.

The government said the European Union’s Regulation on Deforestation-Free Products would begin applying in Northern Ireland in phases from December 30, 2026, because of the region’s access to both the UK Internal Market and the EU Single Market.

It encouraged businesses to prepare their supply chains ahead of the regulation’s implementation to ensure compliance.

The government said its long-term ambition was to move towards a deforestation-free standard, building on international efforts to eliminate forest loss from global supply chains.