Soy and UK food system

This policy brief from the Stockholm Environment Institute examines the UK's reliance on soy imports, primarily for livestock feed, and the associated risks of deforestation and supply chain instability.

• The UK imports more than 3 million metric tons of soy annually, primarily from Argentina, Brazil, and the US. The supply chain faces stress from global competition, including rising demand from China, and environmental impacts such as greenhouse gas emissions and land-use change.
• The livestock industry is highly vulnerable to soy price or supply shocks because approximately 90% of imported soy is used as feed. The poultry sector is the most exposed due to its high dependency on soy and limited ability to substitute it compared to other livestock.
• The most critical risk to the UK industry is deforestation and the resulting Scope 3 emissions. To mitigate these risks, the document recommends that industry actors collaborate for greater supply chain transparency via platforms like the UK Soy Manifesto, implement long-term sustainable sourcing contracts, and conduct economic and environmental assessments of alternative feed crops.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2022). Soy and UK food system. https://www.sei.org/publications/soy-and-uk-food-system/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Soy and UK food system. 2022. https://www.sei.org/publications/soy-and-uk-food-system/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Soy and UK food system |date=24 June 2022 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/soy-and-uk-food-system/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2022soy, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Soy and UK food system}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2022}, month = jun, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/soy-and-uk-food-system/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }