These two acronyms are unfamiliar to most knife makers but are highly significant.
The EUTR, or European Timber Regulation, was replaced last year by the EUDR, or European Deforestation Regulation, so the EUTR can be forgotten.
The EUDR, or European Deforestation Regulation, will regulate in the future the "placing on the market," i.e., the import and trade, "of certain raw materials and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation."
Wood is at the forefront of this. Export is naturally also affected. SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) have a transition period until mid-2025.
Small business owners can breathe a sigh of relief regarding trade within the EU, as they can simply pass on the due diligence responsibility.
This is the situation.
Many are probably thinking, "Oh dear, another bureaucratic monster making our lives difficult," but the necessity to protect our forests from illegal logging is beyond dispute.
Every illegally harvested tree is missing from our global ecosystem, and money for reforestation is not being generated.
When thinking about illegal deforestation, the tropics or the Amazon often come to mind.
However, it also occurs not just in distant places but right in the heart of Europe: https://www.euronatur.org/unsere-themen/urwaelder-in-europa/unser-urwaldprojekt
Countering this with enforceable legislation is, of course, very challenging, as there are many loopholes.
To close these loopholes, the "toothless" EUTR was replaced by the EUDR, and in the future, every "operator and trader" will be responsible for due diligence.
The goal is to trace the legal trade route that wood has taken from its origin to the end customer.
Therefore, it will be particularly difficult for wood importers, requiring a multitude of documents such as geodata of the felled trees, government certificates of legal logging, etc., to fulfill the "due diligence" obligation.
How state control will work in practice will likely be left to individual European states and can only be accomplished through import procedures in cooperation with customs.
Quickly importing a slab of Amboyna burl from Thailand without papers will no longer be possible.
Some may think, "Then all the wood will just go to other countries," but here too, the EUDR applies to imports into Europe.
Illegal wood can then "only" be traded outside the European area.
With the EUDR, Europe will be somewhat safe, and we can pat ourselves on the back.
Even if it feels imposed, this brings us closer to a role model function, and the protection of forests is ultimately non-negotiable.
For more detailed information on the topic with a great diagram, check out:
https://www.ble.de/DE/Themen/Wald-Holz/Entwaldungsfreie-Produkte/FAQs/FAQs.html
A.M.