PARIS (Reuters) – France’s largest bank, BNP Paribas, on Monday pledged to stop funding companies producing or buying beef or soy grown on Amazon land cleared or converted after 2008.
The lender also said it would encourage customers not to buy or produce beef or soybeans grown in Cerrado, a vast tropical savanna ecoregion covering 20% of Brazil, by funding only those who adopt a zero deforestation strategy. by 2025.
Environmental campaign groups said BNP Paribas’ move sent a strong signal to companies trading commodities in the region, but insisted they step up action.
“Financial institutions exposed to the agricultural sector in Brazil must contribute to this fight against deforestation. This is the case with BNP Paribas, “the bank said in a statement.
Soybeans and beef are two of the main drivers of global deforestation. Population growth and the rapid expansion of the middle classes in countries like China have fueled an explosion in demand for soybeans and increased consumption of meat and dairy products.
Some scientists are warning that the Amazon rainforest, which spans nine countries, is on a spiral of death as deforestation continues at a rapid pace. An area of Amazon rainforest the size of Israel was cut down last year, according to Amazon Conservation.
Half of the Cerrado has already been cleaned up and is one of the most endangered ecosystems on the planet, four environmental NGOs said in a joint statement.
“BNP Paribas is giving traders five more years to clear forests with impunity,” said Klervi Le Guenic of Canopee Forets Vivantes.
BNP and other European lenders, including Credit Suisse and Dutch bank ING, pledged last month to stop funding the trade in crude oil from Ecuador after pressure from activists to protect it. Amazonia.
Report by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Matthieu Protard; Written by Matthieu Protard and Richard Lough; Editing by Kirsten Donovan and Jan Harvey
