Leading UK supermarkets have written an open letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak urging him to roll out the deforestation legistation the government vowed to introduce two years ago.
Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, M&S, Aldi, Lidl and Co-op have demanded the government pass legislation to keep products contributing to deforestation out of supermarkets, following promises made at the 2021 Glasgow COP26 summit, The Independent reported.
Arranged by WWF, the letter said it is “senseless” to allow products from illegal deforestation to reach supermarket shelves.
The letter explained: “We applauded the government’s actions in taking the first steps towards this through the adoption of the Environment Act in 2021.
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“Two years have since elapsed and we are still waiting on the government to follow up on its domestic commitments by laying the relevant secondary legislation and sharing guidance on how it will be enacted.
“While UK legislative progress has been delayed, 7.87 million hectares of primary forest has been lost in just the last two years.”
It added that “UK consumers want to see an end to such destruction”.
In June, the European Union adopted deforestation regulations applying to companies with operations or supply chains in Northern Ireland.
Supermarkets said that by “aligning the cut-off date and data requirements of the UK legislation with the EU’s Deforestation Regulation will help further our collective ambition more efficiently whilst reducing cost.”
“Regulation is required and we will not succeed without your support.”
A Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) spokesperson told the publication that it is “committed to implementing these provisions at the earliest opportunity”.
