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The Cerrado, Brazil's second largest biome, is a biodiversity hotspot and critical carbon sink that has seen over half of its native vegetation cleared, primarily for soy and cattle production. While the Amazon has seen a decrease in deforestation, the Cerrado has faced increasing pressure, with deforestation rates surpassing the Amazon by 2011. The document highlights the biome's unique underground carbon storage and warns that climate mitigation policies favoring afforestation and fire suppression may inadvertently harm this fire-adapted ecosystem.

The document explains the mechanisms of Brazil's 2012 Forest Code, specifically the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR) and the Environmental Compliance Program (PRA). It argues that while the law provides tools for monitoring and restoration, effective implementation requires the active engagement of the private sector, financial institutions, and government agencies to move beyond mere legality toward zero net deforestation and degradation.

The report argues that Brazil's historical land abundance led to a misallocation of resources and land-intensive agricultural models. However, it demonstrates that productivity gains can be achieved without further deforestation by converting degraded pastures to crops and improving technology dissemination, credit access, and infrastructure. It highlights the success of the PPCDAm and DETER system in reducing Amazon deforestation but warns of new challenges, such as smaller-scale clearings and deforestation shifting to areas outside the Amazon and around protected zones.

The program targets the global supply chains of palm oil, soy, and beef, which are identified as primary drivers of approximately 80% of worldwide deforestation. It employs a 'whole of supply chain' theory of change, arguing that deforestation can be eliminated if production is localized in the right areas (avoiding natural forests) and follows sustainable practices. The program is structured into four child projects: Support to Production, Generating Responsible Demand, Enable Transactions, and Adaptive Management and Learning. Key geographic focuses include the Amazon and Cerrado in Brazil, the Chaco in Paraguay, and palm oil production in Indonesia and Liberia. The program seeks to leverage a total cost of $443.2 million, including $40.3 million from the GEF Trust Fund, to shift the market from voluntary niche sustainability to a mainstream norm.

The report argues that Brazil can simultaneously increase agricultural production and improve environmental protection by enhancing land-use efficiency. It identifies key barriers to productivity, including limited access to rural credit, insufficient technological diffusion, underdeveloped land leasing markets, and deficient infrastructure. On the protection side, it highlights the need to combat small-scale deforestation in the Amazon, implement the Forest Code on private lands via the Rural Environmental Registry, and extend monitoring to other biomes, particularly the Cerrado. The authors propose a P&P strategy based on systematic monitoring of representative land-use areas and the creation of a public-private consortium to design and test effective policy interventions.

The report proposes a Production and Protection (P&P) strategy for Brazil to reconcile economic growth in agriculture with environmental conservation. It identifies significant within-region productivity gaps in cattle ranching, crop farming, and small-scale agriculture, suggesting that productivity gains can be achieved without further deforestation. Key barriers to these gains include limited access to credit, underdeveloped land rental markets, poor infrastructure, and gaps in technological diffusion. On the protection side, the report highlights the need to combat small-scale Amazon deforestation, enforce the Forest Code on private lands via the Rural Environmental Registry (CAR), and develop market-based incentives for biomes like the Cerrado.

The report argues that Brazil can simultaneously grow agricultural production and protect natural resources by improving land-use efficiency. It identifies key barriers to environmental protection, such as small-scale deforestation in the Amazon and lack of monitoring in other biomes like the Cerrado. For agricultural production, it highlights that non-geographical factors—including limited access to credit for small-scale farmers, underdeveloped land rental markets, and poor infrastructure—hinder productivity. The document recommends an integrated P&P strategy involving systematic monitoring and a public-private consortium to implement targeted policy interventions.

The document argues that conventional 'siloed' policy-making is insufficient to address the interconnected pressures of population growth, urbanization, and climate change on water, energy, and food security. It proposes a 'nexus approach' that integrates management across sectors to identify synergies and minimize negative externalities. The paper details the specific interactions between these sectors—such as the high water intensity of biofuels and the energy requirements of water desalination—and provides case studies from Jordan, Ethiopia, India, and Brazil to illustrate both the risks of non-integrated development and the potential for sustainable, pro-poor intensification.

ClientEarth warns that Brazilian Bill 490/2007 restricts Indigenous land demarcation to areas occupied by 1988, potentially impacting over 300 pending cases and increasing vulnerability to illegal land grabbing. The organization argues that denying these rights threatens biodiversity in the Amazon and Cerrado, contributing to global greenhouse gas emissions.

The document assesses the UK's proposed law to minimise deforestation linked to 'forest risk commodities', arguing that its reliance on 'relevant local laws' creates a loophole that would allow commodities from Brazil to enter the UK market even if they result from legalised deforestation. It details several Brazilian legislative proposals (such as PL 2633/2020 and PL 490/2007) that aim to legalise land grabbing and restrict Indigenous land rights. ClientEarth recommends that the UK adopt an objective standard covering all deforestation, mandate free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) for Indigenous Peoples, and explicitly include cattle, soy, and non-agricultural commodities like mining and oil and gas in the framework.

Global Witness calls for CBD COP16 to transition the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) into actionable plans. The organization advocates for the protection and participation of land and environmental defenders, the implementation of mandatory regulations to end harmful financial flows driving deforestation, and the establishment of responsible mining standards and 'no-go zones' in biodiversity hotspots to ensure the energy transition does not undermine nature.

The report alleges that Brookfield Asset Management oversaw the deforestation of approximately 9,000 hectares of the Brazilian Cerrado between 2012 and 2021 across eight farms, subsequently selling these assets in a 'slash and sell' strategy. It further details a case where a Brookfield-controlled firm was fined R$800,000 for slave labour offences at Fazenda Colorado and an attempt to evict the Kayabí Indigenous community from ancestral lands in the Amazon via the company Agropecuaria Vale do Ximari. The document highlights a contradiction between these actions and the public roles of Brookfield Chair Mark Carney, a co-founder of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), and the firm's ESG policies. It argues that voluntary initiatives like GFANZ are insufficient and calls for mandatory government legislation on environmental and human rights due diligence for the financial sector.

Global Witness calls on the US Congress and the Biden administration to prioritize global forest protection by passing a strengthened FOREST Act and regulating the financial sector. The author highlights that up to 40% of US GDP is linked to sectors with high climate-related forest and land use risks, and that $5 billion in raw commodities were imported from high-risk countries in 2020. The document advocates for a regulatory approach that covers both legal and illegal deforestation, includes Indigenous communities in negotiations, and addresses the failure of non-binding financial commitments, such as those within the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ).

The report examines how the expansion of commodities, forestry, and biofuels—particularly sugarcane—affects soil carbon stocks in the La Plata Basin. It highlights that converting native vegetation to agriculture generally reduces carbon stocks, though no-tillage systems can mitigate these losses. Case studies in the Brazilian Cerrado demonstrate that pre-harvest burning of sugarcane and the removal of crop residues negatively impact soil bacterial communities and mycorrhizal associations, respectively.

Mighty Earth's report characterizes Cargill as a primary driver of environmental and human rights catastrophes globally. The document details the company's failure to meet its own sustainability commitments, specifically regarding deforestation in the Amazon, Cerrado, and Gran Chaco, as well as the use of child labor in West African cocoa production. It further highlights Cargill's pollution of US air and water and its history of food safety negligence, while urging major clients like McDonald's and Ahold Delhaize to sever ties with the company to force systemic change.

The report by Mighty Earth characterizes Cargill as a major contributor to global deforestation, climate change, and human rights violations. It details the company's role in destroying the Amazon and Gran Chaco ecosystems for soy production, the use of child labor in West African cocoa production, and significant pollution of air and water in the United States. The document highlights a pattern of 'misleading' corporate pledges by CEO David MacLennan, noting that the company often resists expanding sustainability protections to new regions like the Brazilian Cerrado. It specifically criticizes major clients such as Ahold Delhaize, McDonald's, and Sysco for continuing to support Cargill despite their own public sustainability commitments.

The report by Mighty Earth characterizes Cargill as a major contributor to global environmental and human rights crises. It details the company's role in the deforestation of the Amazon, Cerrado, and Gran Chaco for soy production, as well as illegal deforestation in West African national parks for cocoa. The document alleges systemic failures in Cargill's sustainability promises, citing continued use of child slave labor in cocoa harvests and severe water and air pollution in the United States. It concludes that corporate customers like McDonald's and Ahold Delhaize are complicit by continuing to source from Cargill despite the company's documented record of deception and ecological damage.

The report by Mighty Earth alleges that Carrefour, as a leader in Brazilian retail, is linked to significant deforestation in the Amazon and Cerrado. It highlights a heavy reliance on JBS for beef and Bunge for soy, both of which are identified as major drivers of deforestation. The report estimates Carrefour's potential responsibility for Amazon deforestation at 4.4% and documents specific links to illegal land clearing in indigenous territories.

Mighty Earth's Deforestation Tracker identifies significant land clearance linked to major Brazilian agribusiness traders, specifically highlighting JBS, Cargill, and Bunge as poor performers. The report details how these companies supply supermarkets in the US, UK, Germany, France, and the Netherlands, and urges retailers to implement strict no-deforestation policies and shift sourcing to better-performing traders.

The report finds that despite commitments by the Retail Soy Group (RSG) to cease sourcing meat linked to deforestation after August 2020, major soy traders continue to purchase from suppliers engaged in land conversion in the Brazilian Cerrado. Analysis of 10 farms revealed at least 27,000 hectares of deforestation since the cut-off date, with Cargill identified as the poorest performer. The document argues that supermarkets are at risk of selling non-compliant products and calls for stricter enforcement of the 2020 cut-off date, improved traceability, and a shift toward alternative proteins.