The potential of deforestation-free agreements to decrease deforestation and promote sustainable supply chains: The case of the Soy Moratorium in Brazil

Deforestation trends in the Brazilian Amazon have been increasingly linked to globalized markets for beef, timber, soybean, and other commodities. In recent years there has been a remarkable proliferation of deforestation-free agreements to pressure corporations to adopt more environmentally responsible practices around the world. The Brazilian Soy Moratorium (SoyM), the first voluntary deforestation-free agreement carried out in the tropics, was implemented in 2006 and pressed major soybean traders to stop purchasing soy grown on deforested lands in the Amazon. To better understand the uptake process of the SoyM, this research: i) explored the ways in which diverse forces (markets, international rules and norms, and direct access to domestic policies) influenced the agreement; ii) analyzed key concomitant events that took place throughout the agreement’s implementation; and iii) developed recommendations to enforce deforestation-free agreements. Studies show that eight years after the establishment of the SoyM, soy expansion realized through deforestation in the Amazon has decreased considerably, yet the overall soy production continued to grow. Enforcement of laws, restrictions on access to credit, and expansion of protected areas appear to have contributed to this decline, as did a decline in the demand for new deforestation. This case study provides valuable lessons on the importance of a package ofmeasures (public policies, monitoring systems, supply chain interventions) to slow the advance of a complex agricultural frontier.