Germany joins For Forest Group+ of forested EU countries as its eighth member

The For Forest Group+ of forested EU countries has again grown stronger as Germany joined the group at the meeting held in Sweden on 31 March–1 April. The topics discussed by the ministers included the EU Deforestation and LULUCF Regulations, the Birds Directive, and the development of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management.

The key objective of the strategic For Forest+ partnership is to develop cooperation on forest-related matters, share information on best practices and seek common positions on forest policy matters, all in alignment with sustainable forest management. The Group was set up by Finland, Sweden, Austria and Slovenia in 2022, France joined the group in 2024 and Italy and Latvia in 2025. 

“With Germany as a member, the For Forest Group+ is now much stronger. The wide interest in the group shows how impactful this kind of constructive and active cooperation can be,” Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sari Essayah says. 

The topical matters affecting the use of forests discussed by the ministers included the application of the EU Birds Directive in the forestry sector, the EU Deforestation Regulation, implementation of the LULUCF Regulation and post-2030 climate architecture of the EU. The ministers took a field trip to forest sites of the Swedish state-owned forest company Sveaskog to learn about forest management that also strengthens biodiversity. 

The For Forest Group+ meeting discussed the implementation of the EU’s Forest Strategy, where it is important to also take into account forest policy that falls within the competence of the Member States and the work done in the context of Forest Europe, the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe. The report on the state and development of Europe’s forests published on Friday 27 March is based on the criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management defined in the Forest Europe process. 

The State of Europe’s Forests 2025 report