GREEN LAW OR GREEN CLAW? THE EXTRATERRITORIAL ROLE OF EUDR AND FARM TO FORK

Abstract

This paper has the purpose of determining whether the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) and the Farm to Fork Strategy (part of the EU's Green Deal) can be labeled as International Environmental Measures with Extraterritorial Implications (IEMEIs). Based on the current state of the art in the field of extraterritoriality in environmental law, it lays on the work of Hadjiyianni and focuses on applying the concept of IEMEIs presented by Hadjiyianni , in order to analyze the extraterritorial reach of the above-mentioned environmental norms. Therefore, the central objective of the study is to determine if Farm to Fork strategy and EUDR can be labeled as IEMEIs and to what extent they produce legal and practical effects beyond the EU’s jurisdiction regarding EU commercial relations with affected countries. In order to provide a general background on both legislations, the article does a concise explanation of the EU's institutional framework and legislative process of the Regulations. The theoretical framework of this section is based on works by Klaus-Dieter Borchardt, Olivier Costa, and Alberto Alemanno, experts on the EU institutional framework and legislative process. Following this introductory section, the article presents a detailed examination of the selected legislative texts, focusing on their legal provisions, scope, and potential extraterritorial effects. Alongside Hadjiyianni’s IEMEI framework, it applies Scott and Cremona’s theories on extraterritoriality, as the authors set the main theoretical framework for the field, and Bradford’s Brussels Effect, which explains how EU regulations influence global markets. This analytical approach seeks to present a structured evaluation of the extent to which the EUDR and Farm to Fork generate extraterritorial effects, thus contributing to the broader debate on the EU’s role as a global environmental regulator. The research question of the article is: Does the EUDR and Farm to Fork contain legal elements that qualify them as IEMEIs? Answering this question by providing an immanent analysis of the legal instruments of each legislation that constitute both as IEMEIs, the research aims to, modestly, narrow the gap between the legal analysis and EU External Policy on Deforestation, offering insights into how EU environmental norms interact with EU External Relations on the scope of international law and non-EU countries’ legal systems. The results shall contribute to ongoing discussions on the field set by the above-mentioned authors the global reach of EU environmental regulations and its implications in the relations between EU and affected countries.