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Despite growing international concern, rainforests continue to be destroyed at a pace exceeding 150 million square meters per year! And that’s only the official numbers. The Amazon, representing more than half the planets remaining rainforests, and comprises the largest and most species-rich tropical rainforest in the world, is threatened to suffer an ecological catastrophe without precedent! Due to activities like logging, Cattle ranching, “Slash and Burn” farming and clearing for commercial agriculture (mainly the recent expansion of the Soya plantations), with its heavy machines and tons of chemicals. The latest study found that agricultural plots averaged twice the size of clearings used for pasture and that about 90 percent of new crops were planted within a year of deforestation. Historically, land clearing for pasture has been the dominant cause of forest loss in the Amazon, but in recent years high soybean prices have fuelled agricultural expansion in the Amazon. The researchers found a strong correlation between deforestation and the average annual price of soybeans.Interesting and stimulant is that Soya is one of the few export products to which the European Union does not apply customs barriers. In other words, easy money for greedy Brazilian landowners and short-term foreign investors.
- 74% of Brazilian meat is exported to Europe (80% of which comes from the Amazon). - 90% of Brazilian soy goes to China and Europe where it’s processed into soy flour and soy oil; main components used by the food industry for human and animal consumption. At least half of what you find in the supermarkets containing vegetal oil; snacks, sauces, margarine, ketchups, baby food… Think for a moment about how much devastated rainforest this implies. |
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