Two Brazilian soy producers supplying European markets and certified by an international oversight body have been involved in deforestation and land grabs in Brazil, according to disaster management researchers.
One producer was found to be producing soy 40 kilometres from its certified facilities on a farm where it has “carried out rampant deforestation for years,” an Earthsight International analysis found.
A second has been accused of pushing “traditional communities” off their land to acquire terrain used to “greenwash” soy products as part of a certification process that requires them to set aside land for conservation.
The businesses, located in Brazil’s in Cerrado region, are certified by the Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS), which – similar to long-established schemes for other commodities that have been linked to deforestation, such as palm oil – is meant to guarantee that purchasing from listed sources is “sustainable” and “responsible.”
But Earthsight said the system “facilitates the greenwashing of deforesters” as agribusinesses who sign up do not have to apply its standards on all their farms.
“Instead, they can cherry-pick those they wish to certify while violating the standard on others,” according to Earthsight, which advised businesses in the food industry to do their own due diligence on suppliers of raw materials rather than rely on the RTRS certification.
The RTRS, which counts retailers such as Aldi and Asda and agribusiness giants such as Cargill among its more than 200 members, describes its mission as promoting “the growth on [sic] production, trade and use of responsible soy.”
Demand for soy has grown in Western countries in recent years, particularly for the production of dairy alternatives and for its use as feed for farm animals such as chickens.
