Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the UK’s deforestation regulations are fair and workable for smallholder farmers internationally.

The Government recognises that action to prevent UK consumption of forest risk commodities driving deforestation should minimise the impacts on smallholder farmers. The UK works with smallholder farmers to improve sustainable practices and encourage forest-friendly businesses. The UK also funds and co-chairs the Forest, Agriculture and Commodity Trade Dialogue with a specific working group focused on smallholder support, facilitating government to government dialogue to build collaboration to reduce risks of smallholder exclusion from sustainable supply chains. The Government is currently considering its approach to addressing the impact of the use of forest risk commodities in our supply chains and will set out its approach in due course.