Proposal to curb soybean growth in the Amazon is starting to show cracks

Brazilian farmers who grow soybeans are reaching far into the Amazon rainforest to expand the acreage and plant more beans to put pressure on the historical land, signed two ten years ago and was aimed at increasing the destruction of forests.

According to Reuters, many industry groups are exploiting the loophole in the moratorium on soybean imports to the Amazon – a voluntary agreement signed by the world’s largest grain traders in 2006, due to its stench They cannot buy soybeans grown on lands that were cut down after 2008.

The moratorium protects old tropical forests that have never been logged before, but also includes many other species that have regrown on previously cleared lands. Although this land is also important for preserving the biome, farmers can clear it and plant soybeans without violating the moratorium, and they can sell it as per the regulations on the exclusion and destruction of forests. Apparently, due to the rules of the forest kingdom, Amazonian landowners can clear up to 20% of their moisture for sowing.

The latest official annual report on the moratorium, covering MY 2022/23, showed that the area of ​​soybeans planted in virgin forests almost tripled between 2018 and 2023, reaching 250,000 hectares. The Amazon used to grow soybeans, or about 1.04 million hectares, is planted where trees have been cut down since 2008, the end date agreed upon in the moratorium.

Earlier, farmer groups launched lawsuits and legislative attacks on the moratorium in the capital and half a dozen major agricultural states, seeking to weaken its provisions. According to the groups, the moratorium has caused the state losses of 20 billion reais ($3.3 billion).

Tags: Brazil, soybean