The European Union will seek to postpone by another year the implementation of a sweeping anti-deforestation law opposed by some businesses and trading partners, the bloc’s environment chief said on Tuesday, September 23. The bill, which bans imports of products driving deforestation, is currently set to take effect at the end of this year after its entry into force was pushed back by 12 months for the first time in 2024.

But the EU’s Environment Commissioner Jessika Roswall told reporters in Brussels on Tuesday that the supporting system was not yet ready and more time was needed to get it running smoothly.

“We have concerns regarding the IT system,” she said. The European Commission will seek another one-year delay, she said, citing fears of possible disruptions for European businesses. The announcement comes hours after the commission struck a free trade deal with Indonesia, a prominent critic of the law, although Roswall told reporters the two developments were “not linked at all.”

The deforestation law was hailed by environmental groups as a major breakthrough in the fight to protect nature and combat climate change. It prohibits a vast range of goods – from coffee to cocoa, soy, timber, palm oil, cattle, printing paper and rubber – if produced using land that was deforested after December 2020.

Firms importing the merchandise in question to the 27-nation EU will be responsible for tracking their supply chains to prove goods did not originate from deforested zones, relying on geolocation and satellite data.

But the ban has faced opposition from trading partners and some EU capitals, amid concerns over red tape, costs and lack of clarity over some aspects of the law. The renewed push for a postponement comes as Brussels has increasingly shifted focus away from climate to boost defence, trade and industry.