Chocolate industry giants lobbied U.S. and EU officials to weaken deforestation laws, report finds

BRUSSELS (EU), FRANCE, GERMANY, IRELAND, LUXEMBOURG, WEST AFRICA (LIBERIA), 25 SEPTEMBER 2026 —

Mondelēz spent up to 1.5 million euros lobbying European officials to delay the European Union Deforestation Regulation, according to a report by Global Witness.

Under the European Union Deforestation Regulation, companies selling to the bloc must prove their forest products were not grown on land deforested after Dec 31, 2020. The law was originally slated to come into force in 2024. It will now be implemented from Dec 31, 2026, according to the environmental watchdog.

Global Witness reports that Mondelēz Chief Executive Officer Dirk Van De Put met Andrew Puzder, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union, in Brussels in June. The meeting took place at the American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union.

The meeting occurred months before a European Parliament and Council vote on September 18 regarding regulatory simplifications, according to the NGO. Puzder is a close ally of Donald Trump, and both are openly critical of the regulation, the report states.

Mondelēz previously supported due diligence rules as part of the European Union Cocoa Coalition alongside Mars, Ferrero and Nestlé. The company broke ranks with its peers in July 2025 to call for a 12-month delay, according to Global Witness.

The NGO states this call came a month after a senior Mondelēz representative joined the board of the Chamber. The company subsequently lobbied powerbrokers in France, Germany, Ireland and Luxembourg to back a second delay proposal by the European Commission, the report says.

Between 2023 and 2025, Mondelēz spent between 1.2 million and 1.5 million euros on European Union lobbying, according to Global Witness. The NGO adds that it remains unclear what topics the money was spent on.

Mondelēz is the only major chocolate manufacturer analyzed by Global Witness that fails to disclose the percentage of its cocoa supply chain that is deforestation-free, the report states. The company remains exposed to cocoa-driven deforestation in West Africa, including Liberia, through an untraceable supply system, according to the NGO.

Mondelēz has sought to sabotage the regulation by launching an aggressive campaign against its implementation, according to Bakary Traoré, executive director of Ivorian NGO Initiatives for Community Development and Forest Conservation.

Cocoa expert Antonie Fountain said Mondelēz is pushing back against the regulation because the company has not done enough to get ready for the law. Fountain leads the NGO coalition VOICE Network and is a member of the European Union Sustainable Supply Chains Coalition in Brussels, according to Global Witness.

A Mondelēz spokesperson said the company fully supports the objectives of the regulation and remains committed to deforestation-free supply chains. The spokesperson added that the company does lobby and engages with policymakers to ensure the regulation works effectively in practice.

Related: Mondelēz International