Progress on the New York Declaration on Forests: Eliminating Deforestation from the Production of Agricultural Commodities – Goal 2 Assessment Report

This executive summary assesses progress toward Goal 2 of the New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF), which aims to eliminate deforestation from agricultural commodity supply chains by 2020. The report finds that while corporate commitments are increasing—particularly for palm oil and wood products—implementation remains inconsistent, with significant gaps in time-bound actionable plans, traceability to the production level, and compliance reporting. The report highlights that the majority of tropical deforestation is concentrated in Indonesia, Brazil, Malaysia, and Paraguay, making targeted action in these countries critical.

• Corporate commitments to eliminate deforestation from supply chains are growing, with over 400 companies making more than 700 pledges. However, these commitments are unevenly distributed across commodities; while 59% of assessed companies sourcing palm oil and 53% sourcing wood products have made commitments, only 21% for soy and 12% for cattle have done so, despite cattle having a deforestation footprint nine times larger than palm oil.
• Implementation of these commitments lags behind the announcements. Less than 50% of assessed companies have actionable plans with specific timeframes, and only 45% report on their compliance with deforestation policies. Traceability remains a major hurdle, as very few companies can trace commodities back to the actual production level, particularly for palm oil and soy.
• The report identifies a geographic imbalance in corporate action. Most committing companies are manufacturers and retailers headquartered in North America, Europe, or Australia. In contrast, producers, processors, and traders—especially those in Africa, Asia, and Latin America—have been slower to act, although some progress is noted among palm oil producers in Southeast Asia and meat processors in Brazil.
• External support from the public and financial sectors is limited. Only one-third of 150 assessed financial institutions have deforestation-related commitments, and few provide financial instruments to support sustainability. While public-private initiatives and moratoria (such as those in the Brazilian Amazon) have shown impact, weak forest governance remains a significant barrier to private-sector success.
• It is currently impossible to determine the actual global impact of these corporate efforts on forest loss because there are no comprehensive global data sets linking supply-chain cleanup efforts to measurable reductions in deforestation.

APA

Forest Declaration Assessment (2016). Progress on the New York Declaration on Forests: Eliminating Deforestation from the Production of Agricultural Commodities – Goal 2 Assessment Report. https://forestdeclaration.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2016NYDFReport_ES.pdf

Chicago

Forest Declaration Assessment. Progress on the New York Declaration on Forests: Eliminating Deforestation from the Production of Agricultural Commodities – Goal 2 Assessment Report. 2016. https://forestdeclaration.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2016NYDFReport_ES.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Forest Declaration Assessment |title=Progress on the New York Declaration on Forests: Eliminating Deforestation from the Production of Agricultural Commodities – Goal 2 Assessment Report |date=2016 |url=https://forestdeclaration.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2016NYDFReport_ES.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{forestdeclarationassessment2016progress, author = {{Forest Declaration Assessment}}, title = {{Progress on the New York Declaration on Forests: Eliminating Deforestation from the Production of Agricultural Commodities – Goal 2 Assessment Report}}, institution = {Forest Declaration Assessment}, year = {2016}, url = {https://forestdeclaration.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/2016NYDFReport_ES.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }