The preservation of Brazil's rich ecosystems has been a priority for the entire planet.
Yet these fragile communities are under constant attack
from man-made fires and deforestation.
Animal Equality reveals why these crucially important regions are burning.
Brazil is the largest producer of meat from cows and also soy,
the majority of which is used to feed chickens, pigs, fish
and other animals in factory farms around the world.
The Pantanal are the largest tropical wetlands in the world.
In 2020, 29% of the Pantanal wetlands were burned,
an area equivalent to more than 6 million football fields.
Factory farming is responsible for more than 80% of deforestation in Brazil.
50% of the Cerrado savannas have been deforested,
an area equivalent to the size of England, Italy, Spain and Portugal, combined.
Brazil is the world’s largest exporter of meat from cows,
exporting to 154 countries.
In 2020 alone, more than 44 million cows were slaughtered in Brazil and 20% of their flesh was exported
Alarming, 99% of this deforestation is occurring illegally.
In Brazil, suppliers are not tracking and monitoring the movement of
animals throughout their entire supply chain.
The current system only verifies the last supplier
before an animal reaches the slaughterhouse,
failing to oversee animals' movements through
non compliant farms who illegally deforest.
Without an effective tracking system,
animals from illegally deforested areas
can be sent directly to unlicensed slaughterhouses.
Where the cruelest of practices occur.
It’s a vicious cycle that begins with Brazil’s ever expanding meat economy.
To keep up, fires are set, forests are destroyed,
and cows are bred to suffer and be slaughtered.
And with every increase in profit farm owners make from these animals,
the higher their incentive becomes to clear more and more land.
Pantanal and The Cerrado are in more danger than ever before.
The ever increasing production of meat and soy for animal feed is
the single biggest cause of the destruction
of Brazilian forests and wetlands.