Call for target to help save forests

■ Report looks at impact of UK food supply chains ■ Taskforce urges Ministers to act on sustainability

NATURE: A legal target should be introduced to halt the destruction of forests in food supply chains within the next decade, a report has urged.

Production of commodities imported and consumed in the UK such as soy, palm oil, beef and leather, cocoa, timber and paper, helps drive loss of forests and natural habitats.

A LEGAL target should be introduced to halt the destruction of forests in food supply chains within the next decade, a report published for the Government has urged.

Production of commodities imported and consumed in the UK such as soy, palm oil, beef and leather, cocoa, timber and paper, helps drive loss of forests and natural habitats which are converted to farmland.

The destruction of forests and other habitats such as naturerich grasslands around the world for these products harms people that rely on them, the rich wildlife they sustain and globally-important carbon storage, the report warns.

The independent report which has been compiled by the Global Resource Initiative Taskforce looked at how to reduce the climate and environmental impact of key UK supply chains.

The researchers from the taskforce have called for a legally binding target to end deforestation within the UK agricultural and forestry commodity supply chains as soon as is practicable, and by no later than 2030.

The move, which should begin with the products that are contributing most to deforestation, should be part of a range of measures by the Government to make the UK’s supply chains more sustainable.

Ministers should also strengthen and extend the requirements around buying food in the public sector, such as for schools, prisons, hospitals and the military, beyond existing sustainability rules for palm oil and timber, according to the report.

The researchers have also warned that businesses and investors also need to step up, with action going beyond the leading retailers, brands and processors to the wider market, including the food service sector such as restaurants.

A spokeswoman for environmental charity WWF said: “This report is an important step in tackling the climate and nature crisis, emphasising the need to act here in the UK if we are to tackle global deforestation.

“When the time is right, after the current health emergency, we look forward to working with the Government and businesses on implementing its recommendations.”

The report states that the UK has an opportunity to put climate and sustainable development at the forefront of its new trade agreements and relationships with other countries after Brexit, as it pushes towards net-zero and rethinks.

And it says that the UK has an opportunity, as hosts of the Cop26 UN climate talks that are due to take place in Glasgow in November, to put protecting nature at the centre of efforts to tackle global warming.

The Government should convene a global call for action on deforestation and sustainable supply chains in the lead-up to Cop26 and try to mobilise public and private funding to tackle the issue, the report said.

The taskforce, chaired by Sir Ian Cheshire, has involved leading businesses including Legal & General, Cargill, McDonald’s and Tesco along with the Green Finance Institute, WWF and Forest Coalition.

When the report was first commissioned then Environment Minister Thérèse Coffey said: “Ingredients in products we are consuming daily come from parts of the world where we are losing habitat, which impacts wildlife and climate change.

“Having a fully sustainable supply chain is vital for the planet. I am pleased the UK is showing leadership on this global challenge.”

The Government has now said it will consider the taskforce’s report and would respond in due course, and its current priority is dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

The report is a key part of the commitment the Government made in the 25 Year Environment Plan to leave a lighter footprint on the global environment.

It will complement existing work to promote sustainable commodities, and the Government’s commitment to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.