Companies’ zero-deforestation commitments have potential to halve cattle-driven deforestation in Brazilian Amazon

Study shows better adoption and implementation of company supply chain policies for Brazilian beef and leather could significantly reduce carbon emissions. Cattle in the Amazon Credit: © Bruno Kelly / Greenpeace If we do eat imported beef, we should buy it from retailers that are trying to improve cattle production systems in Brazil and elsewhere. Rachael Garrett Cattle-rearing is the biggest cause of tropical deforestation in the Amazon - and the world. A study has found that some of the world's largest slaughterhouses reduced cattle-driven deforestation in the Amazon by 15% - equivalent to sparing 7,000km2 of forest from clearance (4.5 times the size of London) - through their commitment to zero-deforestation policies between 2010 and 2018. If these policies were fully implemented and adopted across all cattle companies operating in the Amazon, 24,000km2 of forest (an area larger than Wales) could have been spared over this time, effectively halving cattle-driven deforestation in Brazil. Deforestation is the second largest contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions after fossil fuel use, and the Brazilian Amazon is the world's deforestation hotspot. Zero-deforestation commitments are supply chain policies aiming to ensure production of goods does not involve deforestation, by identifying and dropping suppliers who produce on areas recently cleared of natural vegetation.