Brazil’s cattle sector: A key arena for forest and climate action
As the Amazon hosts COP30, new Trase research shows the world’s largest rainforest is bearing the brunt of Brazilian deforestation and the cattle sector is increasingly responsible. And even though cattle is by far the biggest driver of global deforestation, the latest Floresta 250 – Cattle assessments show companies and financial institutions are failing to do their part, by ignoring the deforestation in their beef and leather supply chains and finance.
Amazon faces mounting pressure from Brazil’s cattle supply chains
The latest Trase data shows that annual deforestation and conversion of native vegetation linked to pasture expansion in Brazil has risen by 36% in four years (2020-2023). And the biggest growth is in the Amazon, which accounts for a growing share of cattle deforestation – rising from 40% in 2017 to 62% in 2023.
At COP26 over a hundred nations signed the Glasgow Leaders Declaration on Forests, recognising that tackling deforestation is crucial to achieve climate goals. New Trase research released last week links Brazilian cattle production to 509.8 million tonnes of GHG emissions – a climate impact which alongside Indonesian pulp and palm oil far outstrips other sources of deforestation-linked emissions.
“Since 2017, deforestation for cattle ranching has shifted markedly towards the Amazon and in 2023 the Amazon accounted for 73% of the pasture related deforestation emissions” said Paula Bernasconi, South American Engagement Lead at Trase. “The good news is that the deforestation is highly concentrated, 61 municipalities in Brazil accounted for 50% of cattle deforestation in 2023, and were responsible for only 11% of the cattle production in that year. So focusing action on hotspots could significantly reduce deforestation while having relatively little impact on cattle production.”
Just 22% of corporate cattle heavyweights have deforestation commitments
Cattle is by far the biggest driver of global deforestation, but it is the forest risk commodity that influential companies and financial institutions are the least likely to address. Higher consumer awareness of the link between palm oil and deforestation means companies are more likely to have a commitment for palm oil, than for beef or leather.
That means the organisations in these supply chains urgently need to act. That is the top finding from Floresta 250 – Cattle, which monitors the performance of the key 175 companies and 75 financial institutions in Brazil’s cattle supply chains. New data released on Monday shows only 22% of assessed companies had published deforestation commitments for beef, leather or both. Just 19% of the assessed financial institutions had published a deforestation policy for cattle products.
Human rights are ignored too
The assessment shows human rights issues linked to deforestation are completely ignored. Only seven (4%) of the 175 companies have a public commitment for the four most critical human rights criteria in the cattle value chain. And none of the financial institutions had publicly available human rights policies linked to Brazilian cattle production.
According to the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, 40% of attacks against human rights defenders over the last decade took place in Latin America, with Brazil recording the highest number of killings worldwide. And Forest 500 data shows companies in the beef sector are less likely to have a commitment for zero tolerance for threats and violence against forest, land and human rights defenders than those in the palm oil industry.
Finance sector action
The finance sector is key to driving change. Through its loans and investments it bankrolls the companies with the greatest influence on the cattle supply chain. With strong stewardship it could transform supply chains to halt the increasing destruction of the Amazon.
There are well-established data, tools and frameworks to support finance institutions to take action today. The recently updated Finance Sector Roadmap for Eliminating Commodity-Driven Deforestation offers financial institutions detailed guidance including the complete Roteiro de Finanças Livres de Desmatamento Portuguese-language Roadmap, customised for Brazil’s financial sector.
“Over recent decades, agricultural businesses have lost US$1 billion from disrupted rainfall caused by deforestation in the Amazon. Deforestation is a major ecological and economic threat. Yet, trillions of dollars flow to activities that harm forests, nature and peoples who depend directly on them. For nature-based solutions to work, first we need to stop destroying nature.” - Pei Chi Wong, Strategic Finance Sector Engagement Lead at Global Canopy
The updated roadmap provides practical steps across six action points, from understanding and mapping risk, through to engagement and onto nature positive investments. Global Canopy is working with six Brazilian financial institutions to build capacity and pilot implementation measures, using practical tools and datasets relevant to the Brazilian context. Pei Chi Wong, Strategic Finance Sector Engagement Lead at Global Canopy, says now is the time to act. “The financial sector can no longer claim a lack of data. The next step is to use this intelligence to make investment decisions aligned with forest protection, climate resilience, and long-term economic security.”
Global Canopy presented this data at a press conference at the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30). The full recording of the press conference can be viewed here.
Notes to Editors
For more information and to arrange an interview, contact: d.mckenzie@globalcanopy.org
About Global Canopy
Global Canopy is a data-driven not for profit that targets the market forces destroying nature by promoting transparency and accountability. Global Canopy provides innovative open-access data, metrics and insights to leading companies, financial institutions, governments and campaigning organisations worldwide, to help them make better decisions about nature, forests and people.
About Trase
Trase is a data-driven transparency initiative that maps the international trade of agricultural commodities, providing tools that enable companies, financial institutions and governments to address tropical deforestation.
