April 15, 2009
Brazil soy moratorium limits soy found in Amazon
The Brazilian Vegetable Oils Industry Association, or Abiove, on Tuesday (April 14) said that the amount of soy found in deforested areas of the Amazon Biome remains limited due to the soy moratorium.
Soy was discovered in around 1,396 hectares out of more than 150,000 hectares inspected in the Amazon Biome, Abiove said.
The inspections are part of the Brazilian soy moratorium in which major trading companies such as Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM) and Bunge (BG) have agreed to not purchase beans from areas deforested after 2006.
Although last year no soy was discovered, Abiove said that independent technical teams this year inspected a larger area.
"I recognize its positive efforts and credit the significant reduction in deforestation to pacts such as the soy moratorium," Carlos Minc, Brazil's Environment Minister, said in the press release.
This tells those farmers who tried to cheat the moratorium that they will pay through loss of earnings and market access, said Paulo Adario, Greenpeace's Amazon campaign coordinator.
The Amazon Biome covers an area of 419 million hectares, with 549 towns in nine states.
Brazil is the world's No. 2 producer of soy after the US.
