"EU plans deforestation delay only for small businesses", 21 October 2025

The European Commission won’t propose a delay of the anti-deforestation regulation for all companies, but only for small and micro operators – not just farmers – that place commodities covered by the rules on the market, three parliamentary sources told Euractiv.

EU Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall floated a one-year delay of the rules last month, which are set to come into force in December 2025, due to IT issues hampering their implementation...

The anti-deforestation regulation will still enter into force on 31 December 2025 as originally planned, with the postponement applying only to small and micro operators dealing in products including cocoa, coffee, timber, palm oil, livestock, and rubber.

For these small operators, the regulation’s entry into force could now be postponed until December 2026.

Small producers will also benefit from a simplified due diligence declaration –  the document certifying that no forests were cleared to produce commodities entering the EU market.

The proposal will need approval of co-legislators, EU countries at the Council and MEPs, who can still push for more changes to the legislation.

See also:

• European Commission's press release of 21 October 2025
• FTAO's statement of the same day