Beef drives deforestation five times more than other products

A study found that two of the main products driving deforestation are beef and soy, with the latter used for animal feed.

The EU, as a net importer of these products, should address the environmental and animal welfare impacts of such imports in order to ensure coherence between EU trade policy and the EU Green Deal.

Tropical forests disappearing at record pace

According to a study by Global Forest Watch, total loss of tropical forests increased by 12% overall between 2019 and 2020. Agriculture is the primary source of global deforestation (40%), and among the main drivers of deforestation, beef ranks first.Overall, beef is responsible for 36% of all agriculture-related forest conversion. The enormous responsibility of the beef industry stems from the conversion of forests into pastureland, which amounted to 45.1 million hectares of cleared land between 2001 and 2015 — a rate five times higher than that of any other product analyzed.

Soy also ranks second in the study, as it is responsible for the destruction of 8.2 million hectares of forest between 2001 and 2015. Soy is produced on a large scale as animal feed, particularly in the poultry (37%) and pig (20%) sectors. The role of the entire meat industry in global deforestation therefore far exceeds that of the beef sector alone.

Species loss through habitat destruction

The findings of Global Forest Watch are deeply alarming, as widespread deforestation has significant impacts on wildlife and their habitats and can lead to the extinction of species that exist only in a specific region. 80% of terrestrial species live in forests, and the world is currently facing the sixth major mass extinction of species which, according to the Global Forest Watch report, is primarily attributable to agriculture. Deforestation is also a source of many animal welfare concerns. As wildfires increase, animals — wildlife as well as domestic animals — suffer, and many fail to escape. For surviving wildlife, many are displaced and endure hunger and social disruption.

Focus: The Amazon

While deforestation hotspots vary by sector, deforestation linked to the beef industry is heavily concentrated in the Amazon, which is home to millions of species. In Brazil alone, where the majority of the Amazon is located, more than half of deforestation over the past twenty years has been for pastureland.Agriculture's responsibility (including the beef sector) for Amazon deforestation is far greater than in other parts of the world, reaching around 56% in 2020, while agriculture in general is responsible for 40% of deforestation.

The EU-Mercosur Agreement Compounds the Problem

Given that deforestation caused by agriculture is permanent (whereas areas affected by fire-induced deforestation may regenerate), it is urgently necessary for the EU to uphold its sustainability agenda. Mercosur is already the EU's largest beef supplier, accounting for 73% of total EU beef imports.If the EU-Mercosur trade agreement were implemented in its current form, beef imports would rise by between 30% and 64%. The Ambec Report — the impact study commissioned by the French government — concluded that the EU-Mercosur agreement would cause an additional 25% of deforestation in the Amazon region in the six years following its entry into force.

The unconditional liberalisation of animal products envisaged in the EU-Mercosur trade agreement would encourage the intensification of animal farming which not only severely compromises animal welfare but also contributes substantially to deforestation.