AMPC helps clarify issues around deforestation

With only nine months until the European Union introduces its Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), the Australian Meat Processor Corporation (AMPC) has prepared a decision support tool for red meat processors to help them prepare for EU compliance reporting.

From December 30, the EUDR will require exporters of cattle, cocoa, coffee, oil palm, soya and wood, or products derived from these commodities, to provide a due diligence statement regarding product risks and mitigations associated with deforestation and forest degradation.

The statement is likely to require geo-coordinates of all production locations for the commodity up to the point of processing (such as birth to slaughter for cattle) and include evidence of compliance with the relevant laws in the country of production.

AMPC instigated its research paper ‘Defining Deforestation Free Supply Chains for Red Meat Products’ in response to concerns that international frameworks and corporate policies were becoming increasingly difficult to compare with deforestation-free definitions, and with commitments differing widely across regional and country contexts.

Range of terminology complicates definitions

AMPC General Manager of Strategic Industry Development, Veneta Chapple, said the issue is made more complex by the reluctance of the EU to expand on how the new regulation will work.

“Our forests in Australia are very different to other countries that export meat products, and the way in which deforestation data is collected and defined here differs from state to state,” Ms Chapple said.

“Industry and governments use different data sets and tools to measure forests and deforestation, and hence the corporates making the deforestation-free pledges – mainly the banks and the supermarkets – are not aligned on risk assessment either.

“We need to work together to ensure the beef industry stays open for business, domestically and internationally. AMPC and the red meat industry have been working closely with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) office in Brussels to try to unpack what’s happening in the EU.”

The AMPC report identified arguments that could be made for demonstrating the sustainability credentials of the red meat industry in respect to forests, noting that the interpretation of deforestation can differ based on local contexts, land use practices and data collection methods.

Evidence-based work required to support industry

The Australian Beef Sustainability Framework (ABSF) is already reporting primary and second clearing of Australia’s agricultural land, using a baseline of 30 years of satellite data to identify annual trends in woody vegetation and seasonal trends in ground cover.

But the definitions for forests, and observations over time, remain a source of global debate. Ms Chapple said the ABSF data could be used as part of a due diligence response but there were limitations to using it to address customer expectations, such as the EUDR.

“We now need agreed, evidence-based work to support our industry through negotiations in markets, either from industry to customer or government to government,” Ms Chapple said.

“A support tool has been prepared to assist producers and meat processors to navigate the nuances for assessing risk and to help provide assurances to customers that their products haven’t contributed to deforestation, and we’ll test and refine this.

Tight timeline to prove Australia’s low risk reputation

“As we understand it, the EU will initially give all countries the same rating in terms of low, high and medium risk, then over time that will change. Australia has a low-risk reputation but our industry needs to be prepared for the EUDR before October, so it’s a very tight time frame.”

AMPC’s research recommends industry and government:

• Recognise there is a broad range of “deforestation-free” commitments being made by corporate interests and regional trade interests – some representing a formative position at this stage
• Recognise the EUDR represents the first set of regulations to emerge in key markets
• Seek further clarification of the extent to which the land use criterion in international definitions of “forest” (notably in the EUDR) excludes specific agricultural land uses
• Support ABARES and other government agencies in Australia to review the 2023 EU Observatory Global Forest Cover map
• Consider the most cost-effective approach for industry members to work with government agencies to establish credible datasets that delineate land use areas with forest cover that align with “agricultural use” definitions and EUDR specific requirements.

Read the full report here