BNP Paribas is a large European bank active in more than 70 countries. One of those countries is Brazil, where beef and soybean farming is hastening deforestation of the Amazon and destruction of the Cerrado, a huge and multi-ecosystem area of savannah in the east of the country. In early 2021 BNP Paribas urged stakeholders in the region “to prioritise land use strategies that integrate zero deforestation, sustainable production and a positive social impact.”
The Bank has toughened its policies to ensure that the activities of its clients, including meat producers and traders, do not cause deforestation and that their products are traceable. Its goal is “to encourage … customers producing or buying beef or soy from the Amazon and the Cerrado in Brazil to become ‘zero deforestation’ and to demonstrate transparently their progress.”
BNP Paribas now offers financial services only to businesses aiming for zero deforestation by 2025 and has referenced the FARMS in its call for livestock farmers to use practices that are “more respectful of animal welfare.”
Full article in BNP Paribas website HERE