Happy Birthday soya moratorium - thanks Chickens!
Why did the chickens invade McDonalds? To save the Amazon rainforest. Today is the second anniversary of the moratorium on buying soya from newly deforested areas in the Amazon, or from farms using indentured or forced labourers. Last month, there was even more reason to celebrate when the moratorium was extended by another year.
The Amazon rainforest is one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet - at least 30 per cent of the world's land-based animal and plant species live there, and it plays a vital role in maintaining the world's climate. Rampant destruction of the Amazon makes Brazil the world’s fourth largest climate polluter.
So what exactly did chickens have to do with saving parts of it? Ok, it wasn’t just chickens but they were big players back in July 2006, when a Greenpeace investigation “Eating up the Amazon” revealed that global food chains including McDonalds were implicated in deforestation, land-grabbing, slavery and violence.
This was because they were buying soya from areas of the Amazon being clear-cut and burned just to grow soya; people living in the forest areas were forcibly evicted from their homes and in many cases slave labour was being used.
The soya they were buying was not to feed the world. No it was to feed cows and chickens to produce delicacies such as er chicken mcnuggets.
So some giant chickens took the message directly to some of the outlets of the golden arches. And they listened. The main soya traders in Brazil (including US giant Cargill and Brazilian-owned Amaggi) were brought to the negotiating table.
The result was the moratorium. But initially it was only for 2 years, that’s why the recent extension is such a good thing. To be effective the moratorium needs to stay in place until there are proper procedures for legality and governance in the Amazon, and until there is an agreement with the Brazilian Government and key stakeholders on long term protection for the Amazon rainforest. To be honest another year may not be long enough, but it’s a good start.
It was especially good news because soya producers had begun using rising agricultural commodity prices and global demand for grain to pressure the Brazilian soya traders’ association (Abiove) and traders not to extend the moratorium. A handful even used the global food crisis to justify further Amazon deforestation.
As our Amazon campaign director, Paulo Adario said at the time: "The decision to extend the moratorium against the backdrop of rising commodity prices and the food crisis shows that government and industry now understand that it is possible to protect the forest, combat climate change and still ensure food production,"
So please join me in wishing the Soya Moratorium a very happy birthday - here's to many more.
Comments
It just goes to show that a lot of conservation and environment issues in developing countries are linked with a fraction of consumers in other parts of the world. Same with use of animal skins/bones, illegal exotic pet trade etc.
Greenpeace as always is doing great work to highlight this particular issue ~ wishing Soya Moratorium a happy birthday and hoping indeed that there are many more...
Posted by: Cats | July 25, 2008 9:35 AM
Yes yes yes!!!
Commodity agriculture is the start of many problems. This intensive industrial agriculture goes to feed animals that may not be developed to digest these foods. The biggest being corn given to cows.
These foods are second class as they quality is judged not good enough for humans, and are therefore given to animals. They tend to be full of fertilizer, pesticides, or simply GM.
Intensive framing of a certain food makes this food cheaper and cheaper on the market.
Because the animals do not eat what they are designed to digest they become ill and are therefore stuffed with antibiotics. 3% still die.
Cows: rather than putting on weight in 5 years, it takes them 12 months.
So, cheap food is made into relatively expansive protein (beef, chicken...)
In the end, humans eat the these proteins, and become ill as well! They therefore seek "Medical" advice and get given drugs.
Of course, the government finances all steps along the way, with our taxes.
This is the basis of WORLD WIDE MANIPULATION.
Money (therefore our time) is taken from us (by the government) to make us unhappy and unhealthy, profiting many many private companies in the process.
Just to say Happy birthday to soya Moratorium! And lets hope not only that it lasts, but that it disappear for ever! :-)
clement.rhein@mac.com
Posted by: Clement Rhein | July 25, 2008 8:36 PM
Puajjjj. McDonald is making hamburgues whit soja an chickens now, because they want to sell more. Olimpys in all the countrys is a good reason for them.
Posted by: Laura Beatriz Paroni Perez | August 14, 2008 3:23 AM
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