On Tuesday (06), the European Union (EU) announced an agreement to ban importing products that contributed to deforestation, such as cocoa, coffee, or soy, near the beginning of the COP15 on Biodiversity in Canada.
The EU measure also includes other products such as palm oil, timber, beef, and rubber – as well as various derivative products, including leather, chocolate, furniture, paper, and charcoal.
The EU is responsible for 16% of global deforestation through its imports (in particular soy and palm oil, according to 2017 data) and is the 2nd largest destroyer of tropical forests, behind China, according to WWF.