The Netherlands is one of the largest EU countries with imports linked to deforestation in South America and Southeast Asia. A report published by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) on Wednesday states that our country is responsible for clearing nearly 30,000 hectares of jungle and other nature every year for the cultivation of coffee, chocolate, soy for animal feed and palm oil.
In addition to the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and Poland are in the top. These countries are responsible for more than 80 percent of the total deforestation by EU countries for the import of raw materials.
The nature conservation organization conducted research into the clearing of rainforest aimed at the import of agricultural products from the European Union. This shows that the Netherlands is one of the largest European importers of soy. The beans are grown in places where there used to be rainforest and savannas. Dutch farmers use soy as feed for livestock, which is ultimately exported as meat.
Worldwide, 5 million hectares of forests in tropical regions are cut down for agriculture every year. That is more than the surface area of the Netherlands. The EU is the second largest in terms of imported deforestation. The EU countries are jointly responsible for 16 percent of deforestation worldwide. In first place is China, which is responsible for 24 percent.
The European Commission will present a bill on deforestation in May. The WWF hopes that this law will ensure that products related to the clearing of rainforest are banned from the European market.
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