Beef

Brazil

Cattle deforestation is the amount of deforestation associated with the production of beef for a given year. Cattle deforestation builds on pasture deforestation and assumes a 5 year life cycle from birth to slaughter, accounting for the average pasture deforestation during the 5 year lifespan.

Cattle deforestation estimates the amount of deforestation associated with the production of beef for a given year. Cattle deforestation combines the area deforested for pastures and cattle production, assuming a 5 year life cycle from birth to slaughter, accounting for the average pasture deforestation during the 5 year lifespan.

Brazil - Cattle deforestation

Cattle deforestation per ton is the pasture deforestation associated with the full production life-cycle of beef for a given year, expressed in hectares deforested per ton of carcass. We assume a 5 year life cycle from birth to slaughter accounting for average production and pasture deforestation during the life cycle.

Cattle deforestation per ton estimates the amount of deforestation associated with the production of beef for a given year, expressed in hectares deforested per ton of carcass. Cattle assumes a 5 year life cycle from birth to slaughter accounting for the average production and pasture deforestation during the life cycle.

Brazil - Cattle deforestation per ton

Estimated cattle production in tonnes of carcass.

Cattle production (ton carcass) per municipality, per year, is calculated as: herd size (per muni/yr) * slaughter rate (per state/yr) * carcass weight (per state/yr). Herd size is derived from IBGE cattle heads (IBGE, 2025), slaughter rate: extrapolates Annualpec slaughter data (IEG & FNP, 2019), based on IBGE slaughter data and corrected for SIGSIF animal movements (MAPA, 2019). Carcass weight is derived from IBGE carcass weights (IBGE, 2025)

Brazil - Cattle production

Gross CO₂-eq emissions from cattle deforestation (using a 5-year allocation period), estimate emission from the loss of the native vegetation biomass (above- and below-ground, litter, and deadwood; excluding soil carbon).

Gross greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cattle deforestation, expressed in tonnes of CO₂-equivalent (t CO₂-eq), are determined by calculating the emissions resulting from the removal of native vegetation carbon stocks. Carbon stocks include the above and below ground biomass including necromass. The carbon stocks are based on the values provided by SEEG v12 (SEEG, 2024). Carbon is converted into CO₂-eq by multiplying the values by 3.67, based on the ratio between the molecular weight of C and CO₂.

Brazil - Gross emissions from cattle deforestation

Gross CO₂-eq emissions from cattle deforestation per ton of beef, assuming a 5-year cattle lifecycle from birth to slaughter. Estimates are based on the loss of native vegetation biomass (above- and below-ground, litter, and deadwood; excluding soil carbon), with carbon stocks converted to CO₂-eq by multiplying by 3.67.

Brazil - Gross emissions from cattle deforestation per ton

Gross CO₂-eq emissions from pasture deforestation (using a 5-year allocation period), estimate emissions from the loss of the native vegetation biomass (above- and below-ground, litter, and deadwood; excluding soil carbon).

Gross greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from pasture deforestation, expressed in tonnes of CO₂-equivalent (t CO₂-eq), are determined by calculating the emissions resulting from the removal (land conversion) of native vegetation carbon stocks. Carbon stocks include the above and below ground biomass including necromass. The carbon stocks are based on the values provided by SEEG v12 (SEEG, 2024). Carbon is converted into CO₂-eq by multiplying the values by 3.67, based on the ratio between the molecular weight of C and CO₂.

Brazil - Gross emissions from pasture deforestation

Net CO₂-eq emissions attributable to cattle deforestation (using a 5-year allocation period). Estimates are based on the difference between the biomass stored in the native vegetation biomass (above- and below-ground, litter, and deadwood; excluding soil carbon).

Net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cattle deforestation, expressed in tonnes of CO₂-equivalent (t CO₂-eq), are estimated based on the difference between the biomass stored in the native vegetation biomass before land conversion and the carbon stored in pastures. Carbon stocks include above and below ground biomass including necromass. Both the native vegetation and the pasture carbon stocks are based on estimates provided by SEEG v12 (SEEG, 2024). Carbon is converted into CO₂-eq by multiplying the values by 3.67, based on the ratio between the molecular weight of C and CO₂.

Brazil - Net emissions from cattle deforestation

Net CO₂-eq emissions from cattle deforestation per ton of beef, based on the biomass difference between native vegetation and pasture, assuming a 5-year cattle lifecycle from birth to slaughter.

Brazil - Net emissions from cattle deforestation per ton

Net CO₂-eq emissions attributable to pasture deforestation (using a 5-year allocation period). Estimates are based on the difference between the biomass stored in the native vegetation biomass (above- and below-ground, litter, and deadwood; excluding soil carbon).

Net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from pasture deforestation, expressed in tonnes of CO₂-equivalent (t CO₂-eq), are determined by calculating the emissions resulting from the removal of native vegetation carbon stocks, due to deforestation for pasture, and the carbon stored in pasture. Carbon stocks include above and below ground biomass including necromass. Both the native vegetation and the pasture carbon stocks are based on estimates provided by SEEG v12 (SEEG, 2024). Carbon is converted into CO₂-eq by multiplying the values by 3.67, based on the ratio between the molecular weight of C and CO₂.

Brazil - Net emissions from pasture deforestation

Pasture deforestation is the amount of deforestation across a five-year allocation period that is converted to pasture. To calculate it, we overlapped the annual pasture maps from MapBiomas with the annual territorial deforestation five years prior to the target year for pasture, including the year the pasture was detected.

Pasture deforestation is quantified as the total area of deforestation converted to pasture within a five-year allocation period. We calculate this by spatially overlapping annual pasture maps from MapBiomas with annual territorial deforestation data. This analysis identifies all deforestation that occurred within the five years prior to, and including, the year pasture was detected, yielding a cumulative estimate of deforestation linked to pasture land use. The territorial deforestation data is a composite dataset, integrating information from Prodes Amazon (INPE, 2025), Prodes Cerrado (INPE, 2025), and MapBiomas deforestation (MapBiomas, 2025; Souza et al., 2020) data for all other biomes.

Brazil - Pasture deforestation

Area of pasture derived from Mapbiomas collection 10 (MapBiomas, 2025)

Brazil - Pasture area

Percent export traded under a Company Zero Deforestation Commitment (ZDC) or the G4 (Compromisso Público da Pecuária – CPP) commitment.

Percent beef export volume traded under a Company Zero Deforestation Commitment (ZDC) (Global Canopy, 2025; Thomsen, 2025), G4 (Compromisso Público da Pecuária – CPP) (Greenpeace, 2009). NA for areas where no beef is exported from. ZDCs are assessed by Global Canopy following the Forest 500 guidance for those companies handling together 90% of total beef exports.

Brazil - Beef exported under a ZDC

Percent production under a Company Zero Deforestation Commitment (ZDC) or the G4 (Compromisso Público da Pecuária – CPP) commitment. Note, trader commitments within the domestic supply-chain are not assessed here.

Percent production volume (incl. exports and domestic) traded under a Company Zero Deforestation Commitment (ZDC) (Global Canopy, 2025; Thomsen, 2025), G4 (Compromisso Público da Pecuária – CPP) (Greenpeace, 2009). ZDCs are assessed by Global Canopy following the Forest 500 guidance for those companies handling together 90% of total beef exports.

Brazil - Beef produced under a ZDC

Brazil beef - Supply chain data

Locations and attributes of slaughterhouses and other livestock processing facilities in Brazil, compiled from federal, state, and municipal inspection registries.

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