Soy producers take a stand against deforestation

THREE of Brazil’s leading soybean producers have agreed to put in place a 100% deforestation-free soy value chain. The move means that virtually all the soy supplied to the salmon farming industry as feed will be from sustainable sources.

The three producers – CJ Selecta, Caramuru and Imcopa/ Cerverjaria Petropoli – have worked with the sustainability certification organisation ProTerra, and WWF Brazil, to develop a robust monitoring, reporting and verification system. It is expected that the three companies will be 100% deforestation-free by August 2020.

The aquafeed industry has welcomed the move, which means that the whole of the European salmon farming sector and the vast majority of the global salmon industry will be sourcing its soy feed from suppliers that have banned soy from deforested areas.

Morten Holdorff Møjbæk, Global Sourcing Director, BioMar Group, said at the launch: “Today’s announcement is a testament to over a decade of collaboration and shows the result of establishing longterm commitments with Brazilian soy farmers. It also demonstrates the strength of the BioMar supplier approval program (SAAT) and how working together to find solutions can result in systemic change. We hope all supply chains will be inspired to move in this direction of transparency to ensure an open and traceable aquaculture industry.”

Maurício Voivodic, Executive Director WWF Brazil, said: “We see this voluntary sector-wide commitment as a benchmark to inspire other global animal protein sectors, as well as other markets linked to the soy supply chain. We celebrate together this relevant private sector led process for the protection of the unique Brazilian Cerrado.”

The pledge marks the first time an industry group has voluntarily taken action against deforestation in soybean farming. Aquaculture feed only accounts for less that 0.5% of total soy production, and the pressure is now on other animal feed sectors to follow suit.

Ida Breckan Claudi, Rainforest Foundation Norway, Senior Adviser, said: “The Brazilian soy suppliers and the Norwegian salmon industry show true leadership and set the new bar for sustainable supply chains. This historic commitment by their Brazilian soy suppliers will be a game changer for global supply chains. Global pork, poultry and beef producers are lagging behind, by still allowing deforestation in their supply chain. To stop being complicit... the meat industry must follow suit and require their suppliers to become fully deforestation-free.”