A shock of terrifying figures unveiled: over 800 million trees cut down in the Amazon in just six years. But why? To satisfy our insatiable appetite for Brazilian beef. That's 1.7 million hectares wiped out by the Brazilian livestock industry between 2017 and 2022. These findings come from a rigorous new study by intrepid and daring investigative journalists.
The Bruno and Dom Project: Tribute to Murdered Journalists
This research is an integral part of the Bruno and Dom Project, a bold initiative created by Forbidden Stories. But who are Bruno and Dom? Bruno Pereira, a specialist in indigenous peoples, and Dom Phillips, a British journalist working with numerous international media. Their meticulous work on illegal activities in the Amazon has led to their assassination in 2022.
The Sad Truth Revealed by a Major Investigation
Satellite images, livestock movement records and other data have revealed the alarming extent of deforestation around more than 20 slaughterhouses. These facilities are owned by just three operators: JBS, Marfrig and Minerva. These industry giants are responsible for around 70% of Brazil's beef exports.
Flesh from the Amazon: A Global Gourmet Delight
“Do you think this problem is far from you?”, asks Forbidden Stories. Their findings show that this ecological disaster affects us all. “The global appetite for beef is accelerating the global climate catastrophe: around two-thirds of Amazon deforestation is linked to livestock farming,” warns the organization.
Food giants in the crosshairs
JBS is one of the 15 largest food companies in the world. In 2022 alone, this multinational slaughtered an average of 75,000 head of cattle a day, supplying raw meat to customers in over 190 countries. Marfrig and Minerva operate on a slightly smaller scale, but remain two of the sector's major players.
Trade Ignoring Environmental Laws
According to the survey, all these facilities export to regions such as the European Union (EU), the UK and China. Companies such as Nestlé and Germany's Tönnies are among the buyers of meat from the slaughterhouses mentioned in the study.
Corporate Responsibility
Nestlé told The Guardian that two of the three meat packers were not in its supply chain. For its part, Tönnies said it did not know whether the meat they received was linked to deforestation in the Amazon.
The Amazon: A Planetary Lung in Peril
The Amazon is on the brink of a point of no return, warns Alex Wijeratna, director of Mighty Earth. “These kinds of figures are very alarming because the Amazon can't afford to lose this amount of trees… It has planetary implications,” he stresses.
Research warns: over the past 40 years, more than 17% of the Amazon rainforest has been destroyed. The scientific community estimates that the Amazon's “point of no return” lies between 20% and 25%. Once this threshold is crossed, the forest could resemble a savannah, leading to the collapse of this shield against climate change.
