Joint letters
European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF), European Magazine Media Association (EMMA), European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA), European Publishers Council (EPC), Federation of European Publishers (FEP), News Media Europe (NME)
EUDR - Joint Statement in Support of Amendment 65
Excluding books, newspapers and magazines from the EUDR protects vital democratic and cultural sectors from unnecessary harm, all without weakening the Regulation’s objectives and environmental ambition
We, the undersigned organisations representing Europe’s press and book sectors, fully support the objectives of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). However, both the Regulation and the recent Commission simplification proposal still include finished printed products such as books, newspapers and magazines within their scope—despite these products posing no risk of driving deforestation. This unjustified inclusion, which goes against the Commission’s original EUDR proposal, threatens the sustainability of sectors that are the backbone of Europe’s democratic, cultural and information ecosystems. The plenary vote on Wednesday, 26 November offers a crucial opportunity to correct this misunderstanding, and we ask for your support.
Amendment 65 provides a necessary and proportionate solution by restoring the scope originally proposed by the Commission in 2021 and excluding finished printed products—whose very nature places them outside the logic of the EUDR—from Annex I.
We emphasize that excluding books, newspapers and magazines is not a weakening or watering down of the EUDR. These are finished goods, not commodities that could drive deforestation. Moreover, printed products are already highly sustainable, generally produced from certified, largely recycled or sustainably managed sources. Importantly, all paper used by our members must, going forward, fully comply with EUDR requirements. This means that the environmental safeguards in the supply chain remain entirely intact. The amendment simply ensures that the Regulation remains focused on materials that can impact forests, while avoiding collateral damage to cultural and informational goods.
The Commission’s 2021 proposal rightly limited the scope to wood pulp and paper. Including finished printed products adds no environmental benefit but creates a disproportionate regulatory overreach downstream for publishers, printers and retailers, creating burdens that threaten the free flow of information and ideas, media pluralism, cultural diversity, education and democratic discourse across the Union.
These risks are already materialising: retailers in several Member States have warned they may delist press products; international publishers are considering withdrawing from the EU market because compliance for finished printed products is unworkable; and millions of books risk destruction simply because their import would be blocked—an absurd and harmful consequence of legislation intended to protect forests. At stake is not only the access to books by citizens; this also hinders the entire publishing infrastructure of the university and academic sectors, both of which rely on a wide range of international publications.
We support the goals of the EUDR. But if the Regulation disregards the realities of highly integrated supply chains and imposes disproportionate obligations on sectors that do not contribute to deforestation, it risks undermining both its credibility and its objectives.
We therefore urge all Members of the European Parliament to support Amendment 65.
The signatories:
European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF): https://europeanbooksellers.eu/
European Magazine Media Association (EMMA): https://www.magazinemedia.eu/
European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA): https://www.enpa.eu/
European Publishers Council (EPC): https://www.epceurope.eu/
Federation of European Publishers (FEP): https://fep-fee.eu/
News Media Europe (NME): https://www.newsmediaeurope.eu/
The European Magazine Media Association, is the unique and complete representation of Europe’s magazine media, which is today enjoyed by millions of consumers on various platforms, encompassing both paper and digital formats.
The European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA) is the largest representative body of newspaper publishers across Europe. ENPA advocates for 14 national associations across 14 European countries, and is a principal interlocutor to the EU institutions and a key driver of media policy debates in the European Union.
