South American agricultural and government leaders are ramping up their criticism of a European Union (EU) regulation aimed at ensuring that European imports of seven commodities—beef, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, rubber, soy and timber—do not contribute to deforestation. Specifically, they question how the measure will be implemented, and they view the exercise as the unilateral imposition of international environmental regulations. The EU measure, whose implementation is scheduled to begin in January 2025, applies to countries that aim to sell any of the seven commodities or certain derivatives to EU nations. It requires nations to certify that production of the exports has not contributed to deforestation that has occurred since Dec. 31, 2020. The text of the regulation estimates that annual deforestation worldwide from today to 2030 will be 248,000 hectares (613,000 acres) lower with the measure in effect than without it. The EU also estimates 90% of deforestation... [Log in to read more]