May 2, 2006

Greenpeace obstructs Cargill's soy from entering Europe

Greenpeace activists prevented unloading operations of a shipment of Amazon soy on Saturday (Apr 29) to protest the destruction of the Amazon rainforest to grow soy for to produce cheap European meat.

The shipment belongs to agricultural giant Cargill.

Activists chained themselves to the conveyor belt and the suction pump used to unload the soya, while some painted 'Forest Crime' on the company's silos in Amsterdam port.

Greenpeace forests campaign coordinator, Gavin Edwards, said Cargill is exploiting the Amazon to provide cheap meat.

Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) and Bunge control 60 percent of soy production in Brazil and more than three-quarters of Europe's soy crushing capability.

The group said 19,000 hectares of the rainforest, almost the size of Amsterdam, would have to be mowed down to grow the amount of soy on that shipment.

Greenpeace also alleged that the company has dealings with farms that illegally exploits public and indigenous Amazon land. Some have even used slave labour.

Greenpeace first made the allegations earlier this month.