Overview
- Industry group ABIOVE exited the Soy Moratorium on February 16, ending the sector’s flagship no-buy policy for soy grown on post‑2008 deforested land in the Amazon.
- ABIOVE represents dominant global traders including Cargill, Bunge, ADM, Louis Dreyfus, Amaggi and COFCO, magnifying the impact on supply-chain governance.
- A new Mato Grosso law penalizes producers who adopt standards stricter than legal minimums by stripping subsidies, tax breaks and rights to use public lands, and Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court let the law stand.
- Researchers at IPAM report the moratorium’s end could raise Amazon deforestation by up to 30% by 2045, while Greenpeace cites studies showing a 69% decrease in soy-driven forest loss since 2006.
- Fourteen European buyers, including Tesco, Lidl and Aldi, warn they may stop purchasing Brazilian soy if traceability weakens, even as ABIOVE says members will continue to meet market requirements.