On Thursday 4 June 2025, the Luxembourg Chamber of Agriculture issued a statement calling for a substantial reduction in bureaucracy related to the EU Deforestation Regulation.
The Chamber of Agriculture noted that the EU Deforestation Regulation aims to curb global forest degradation through deforestation-free supply chains.
The Chamber emphasised that “while the objective is commendable and important”, the administrative burden linked to the regulation must remain limited to what is essential. It added that rising bureaucracy continues to put pressure on the European economy, especially the agricultural sector, and pointed to this trend as one of the main causes of the Europe-wide farmers’ protests in 2024. The Chamber noted that EU institutions acknowledged the need to simplify agricultural policy, with Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen recently presenting an initial package to reduce red tape. A second, broader package should follow by the end of the year. The Chamber called on the entire European Commission to deliver “substantial simplifications” and to limit new obligations to what is strictly necessary.
The Chamber of Agriculture called on EU institutions to include the 2023 EU Deforestation Regulation in the announced package of measures to reduce bureaucracy. It argued that, in its current form, the regulation, due to take effect at the end of 2025, remains unacceptable for the agricultural sector. The Chamber criticised the plan to impose identical obligations across all supply chains, regardless of the actual deforestation risk in individual countries. It explained that risk assessments would only influence the frequency of official inspections, not the core requirements. As an example, the Chamber noted that all cattle farmers in Luxembourg could soon need to provide regular georeferenced data, even though national law already protects forest areas. It described this as “clearly the wrong approach” and urged EU policymakers to exempt low-risk countries from what it called “unnecessary bureaucratic burdens.”
In this context, the Chamber of Agriculture welcomed the recent initiative by Luxembourg's Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Viticulture, Martine Hansen, who received broad support from fellow EU agriculture ministers in calling for changes to the EU Deforestation Regulation. The Chamber also urged Luxembourg's Minister of the Environment, Climate and Biodiversity, Serge Wilmes, to step in at the EU level and help secure the necessary adjustments. It emphasised that “time is of the essence.”
