European diplomat Enrico Prezio argued that Regulation 1115 could benefit Argentine exporters that already document the origin of their production, since it requires that wood, soy and beef not come from fields deforested since late 2020.
Far from seeing it as a threat, the European Union's Regulation 1115 could become a commercial advantage for Argentine exporters that already have the origin of their production documented. That was the view set out by Enrico Prezio, first secretary of the Economy and Trade section of the European Union Delegation in Argentina, during a forestry seminar held in Posadas.
“The entire obligation applies to the economic operator that places the product on the European market,” Prezio told Bichos de Campo. In an import operation, it is that operator who must carry out the “due diligence” and submit the declaration that the product does not come from a field deforested from 2021 onward.
To comply with that requirement, the diplomat explained, the importer will ask the Argentine supplier for information. That is where the commercial consequence emerges: if one supplier can provide the origin data and another still has to reconstruct it, the buyer has a reason to choose the first. On that point, Prezio believes Argentina could gain an advantage over other suppliers.
Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 covers products from the wood, soy and beef chains, and requires that they be deforestation-free and produced in accordance with the legislation of the country of origin. The cut-off date for felling trees on the fields of origin is December 31, 2020. Among the data the operator must gather is the geolocation of the production plots or, for cattle, of the establishments where the animals were kept throughout their growth.
In Misiones, Prezio cited as an example the forestry companies that already work with international standards: there are certified areas for which the land has already been delimited and geolocated and the chain of custody documented, so part of the work is done.
Another point of discussion is that Argentina appears as a “standard risk” country and not as “low risk,” as it had sought. Prezio defended the use of common criteria for all countries and linked Argentina's classification to the expansion of agriculture toward the north, although he acknowledged that the category can be reviewed, without giving a date or anticipating a change.
Argentina has already challenged before the World Trade Organization the fact that the assessment had not adequately weighed its environmental regulations and its traceability, monitoring and geolocation systems, but for now it is on the losing end.
According to the European Commission's schedule, the regulation will begin to apply on December 30, 2026, for large and medium-sized companies and on June 30, 2027, for most micro and small enterprises. In the meantime, the European agri-food chain and the Argentine government continue to call for flexibilities.
