Deforestation in the Amazon has caused the European Union to avoid trade agreements with Brazil
The embargo on products extracted from areas where deforestation is taking place is approaching tropical countries such as Brazil. According to experts heard before Globe
The ban on imports of goods grown in deforested areas, proposed by the European Union to the bloc’s parliament on Wednesday (17), could also be repeated in other markets, such as the United States, China and the United Kingdom.
Climate Watch Executive Secretary Marcio Astrini highlighted legislation under consideration in the US Congress that would expand the range of products, including soybeans, leather and meat, that cannot be purchased in deforested areas. On the other hand, the Chinese announced that, at some point, they would demand no dismantling in international trade.
“In an ideal world, Brazil should not be afraid of this EU project, because it is something that must always be pursued. The problem is that the country is run by someone who works in the service of deforestation and environmental destruction. The danger is not European law,” said Astrini, referring to President Jair Bolsonaro, referring to President Jair Bolsonaro. But we have the president.”
Wilbur Barrall, a consultant at BMJ, pointed out that a bill similar to that of the European Union is under development in the UK: a regulation that would restrict the import of products that come from areas of deforestation.
“This could mean new barriers to Brazilian exports,” he said.
Behind the scenes, diplomatic and economic sources and from foreign trade areas were trying to understand the text of the project. The most common expression GLOBO has heard is that the action is ‘punitive’, ‘incriminates tropical products’ and that it ‘sounds very bad’. But the closed position in the matter will not be known until the next few days.
For the former president of the Brazilian Rural Association, Pedro Camargo, the demand for traceability of Brazilian products by Europeans is positive, even predictable. However, it was estimated that the EU extrapolated, by including legal deforestation after December 2020, not just illegal deforestation, into the restriction.
“This interferes with national legislation and is not stipulated in the rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It is their mistake that will only lead to unrest,” Camargo stated.
International trade and agribusiness expert at TozziniFreire Advogados, Vera Canas, said initiatives to promote environmental care in developing countries are welcome. However, these programs must be well regulated to avoid falling into the protectionist trap.
“A clear example of this is the plan announced by the European Union to force the European importer of products such as meat, soybeans, coffee and cocoa to prove that they are not the result of deforestation. Certainly, no consumer in the twenty-first century would want to buy a commodity whose production harms nature” .
According to Vera Canas, by imposing disproportionately difficult requirements for compliance, the procedure distorts goodwill and becomes a non-tariff barrier. This is against the WTO.
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