Some of Europe's biggest retailers and consumer goods firms have signed an open letter to Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, calling for a halt to deforestation for soy production.
On the retail and wholesale side, Ahold Delhaize, Aldi, Asda, Carrefour, Iceland, Lidl, Sainsbury's, Marks & Spencer, Metro AG, Morrisons, Norgesgruppen, Picard, Rewe, Tesco, The Co-Operative and Waitrose are among the signatories.
Consumer goods firms that signed the letter include Cranswick, Hilton Food Group, Kerry Group, Lantmännen, Mars Inc, Mowi, Princes and Tulip Ltd.
A full list of the signatories, which combined account for around $3 trillion of assets, can be found here.
Amazon Soy Moratorium
Investor network FAIRR penned the letter, which calls for the protection of the ‘Amazon Soy Moratorium’, an agreement that ensures that soy production in the Amazon region only occurs on existing converted agricultural land and not through deforestation.
It said that since the Amazon Soy Moratorium, or ASM, was implemented in 2006, soy-related deforestation has decreased, while production has increased 400%, indicating that increased agricultural output need not come at the expense of the destruction of the rainforest.
'Our position is clear: we want to be able to continue to source from, or invest in, the Brazilian soy industry but if the ASM is not maintained, this will risk our business with Brazilian soy,' the letter states.
'Today, there is enough existing agricultural land to continue to increase soy production in the Amazon by an additional 600% compared to current figures. We look forward to supporting Brazilian partners to continue their leadership and show that economic development and environmental protection can go hand in hand."
Brazilian president Bolsonaro has advocated increased economic development of the Amazon region, drawing criticism from both home and abroad.
© 2019 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
