Canada seeks deforestation law carveouts as EU ties deepen

BRUSSELS — Canada’s man in Brussels wants to rework how the European Union’s landmark anti-deforestation law applies to Canadian businesses as the two sides explore ways to deepen their relationship.

Following Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s proposal to make Canada the EU’s first “associate member,” Ottawa wants to “clean up some of the long-standing irritants that have existed” between Canada and the EU, Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada’s ambassador to the EU, told POLITICO at a Brussels Playbook Live event on Tuesday.

Chief among those grievances is the EU’s new Deforestation Regulation, which kicks in on Dec. 30 and requires companies importing goods like palm oil, coffee and wood into the EU to prove those products were not produced on deforested land.

The law has faced fierce backlash from several EU countries and the bloc’s trading partners. Critics argue it will generate hefty compliance costs for businesses and doesn’t provide enough exemptions for countries classified as having a low risk of deforestation.

The application of the new rules “could be done in a manner that was easier for third parties,” said Wilkinson. While Canada has “no argument” with the EU’s aim to halt deforestation, the law doesn’t include any “carveout that said you don’t have to put in place all of these burdensome requirements” for low-risk countries, he added.

Wilkinson said Ottawa does not expect Brussels to create a unique exemption from the deforestation rules specifically for Canada, but is “hoping to actually have a dialogue about how could you actually fix this.”

Canada has been pursuing stronger links with Europe to reduce its dependence on the U.S. amid a trade dispute between the two countries. The EU is also eager to deepen ties with Ottawa as the bloc looks to diversify its supply of critical raw materials and as its own relationship with the U.S. grows increasingly tense.

Canada’s exports to the EU were valued at $34.5 billion in 2025, trade data shows, including $242 million in wood and wood products and $174 million in paper and pulp.