Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) Malaysian rubber and palm oil farmers filed a petition to the EU on Wednesday, protesting against the bloc’s new environmental rules.
EU’s new rules agreed in December last year would prevent the import of goods linked to deforestation by requiring producers to prove their goods were not grown in areas deforested after 2020, according to Reuters reporting on Wednesday.
In a joint statement, a group of six associations of small farmers warned: “the regulation’s unilateral and unrealistic demands on traceability and geolocation will prevent small farmers from accessing the EU market.”
Malaysia and Indonesia, the top two palm oil exporters, have previously accused the EU of blocking imports of their palm oil.
The Malaysian Ministry of Plantation and Commodities has announced plans to spend roughly two million euros this year to fight against what it sees as the EU’s anti-palm oil campaign. The ministry has called on the parliament to allocate additional two million euros for the purpose.
Harmful rules
The group of six associations of small farmers submitted the EU petition to the bloc’s delegation in Kuala Lumpur, stressing that the EU should review the new rules and “recognize the harm” the move would cause to small farmers.
Such farms grow oil palms on approximately 1.5 million hectares in Malaysia, accounting for roughly 26% of oil palm cultivation in the country. More than 7 million small farms around the world grow oil palms and rely on market access to escape poverty.
In the joint statement, small farmers reiterated that EU’s new rules place an additional burden on small farmers and threaten their livelihoods. They expressed concern that new rules could lead to the EU labelling Malaysia as a high-risk country for deforestation.
“Given Malaysia and its small farmers’ record on forest protection and sustainable production, and the mandatory adoption of the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil standards across the palm oil supply chain, such a designation would be highly demeaning to the Malaysian government and unjustified,” the group stressed.
EU Ambassador to Malaysia Michalis Rokas noted that he attended a meeting with representatives of small farmers and added that he will relay their concerns to EU institutions.
“Malaysia has already in place systems to ensure non-deforestation and traceability, so we do not expect any extra costs from smallholders,” Rokas stressed in a statement and concluded that the EU is prepared to support Malaysian small farmers.