Summary of Complaint to the United States National Contact Point for the OECD against Cargill regarding failures in the company’s environmental and human rights due diligence systems for soy operations in Brazil

ClientEarth has filed a complaint with the US National Contact Point for the OECD, alleging that Cargill fails to conduct adequate due diligence to prevent deforestation and human rights abuses in its Brazilian soy supply chains. The complaint highlights specific failures regarding the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes, indirectly sourced soy, non-owned soy handled at Cargill ports, and indirect land use change. ClientEarth seeks full disclosure of Cargill's policies and the adoption of effective due diligence measures aligned with OECD-FAO and UN guidance.

• Cargill is the largest exporter of soy from Brazil, representing 10.5% of the country's total soy production, with sourcing primarily from the Amazon, the Atlantic Forest, and the Cerrado savanna.
• ClientEarth alleges that Cargill's environmental due diligence is insufficient in the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest compared to the Amazon. Specifically, in the Cerrado, Cargill reportedly fails to monitor the full extent of ecosystem conversion, conducts low levels of due diligence outside priority municipalities, and allows sourcing from recently converted areas; no due diligence is reportedly conducted for the Atlantic Forest.
• Cargill is accused of failing to implement adequate due diligence for indirectly sourced soy, which constitutes 42% of its soy from Brazil. ClientEarth claims the company lacks systems to trace this soy to the farm of origin and has no measurable goals for traceability.
• The complaint states that Cargill conducts no deforestation and conversion free (DCF) due diligence for 'non-owned soy'—soy owned by other entities that Cargill stores and transports at its seven Brazilian port terminals. The document notes that Cargill's port at Santarém has incentivised deforestation in the Amazon.
• Cargill is alleged to ignore 'indirect land use change,' where soy production on old pastureland displaces cattle grazing into pristine forests and savannas. Trase estimates that in the Amazon and Cerrado, every hectare of soy expansion onto pasture results in at least one hectare of pasture expansion onto forest.
• The complaint alleges failures in human rights due diligence, stating Cargill risks contributing to violations against Afro-Brazilian, Indigenous Peoples, and local communities, including forced displacement, violence against land defenders, and pesticide contamination.

APA

ClientEarth (2023). Summary of Complaint to the United States National Contact Point for the OECD against Cargill regarding failures in the company’s environmental and human rights due diligence systems for soy operations in Brazil. https://www.clientearth.org/media/puvcgh42/summary-of-clientearth-s-oecd-complaint-against-cargill.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Summary of Complaint to the United States National Contact Point for the OECD against Cargill regarding failures in the company’s environmental and human rights due diligence systems for soy operations in Brazil. 2023. https://www.clientearth.org/media/puvcgh42/summary-of-clientearth-s-oecd-complaint-against-cargill.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=Summary of Complaint to the United States National Contact Point for the OECD against Cargill regarding failures in the company’s environmental and human rights due diligence systems for soy operations in Brazil |date=May 2023 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/puvcgh42/summary-of-clientearth-s-oecd-complaint-against-cargill.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2023summary, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Summary of Complaint to the United States National Contact Point for the OECD against Cargill regarding failures in the company’s environmental and human rights due diligence systems for soy operations in Brazil}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2023}, month = may, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/puvcgh42/summary-of-clientearth-s-oecd-complaint-against-cargill.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }