Cerrado gets its own protocol

Despite the commitment of the largest Brazilian beef processing companies to preserve the Cerrado region, they have not been able to see eye-to-eye about how to effectively monitor cattle suppliers in the biome. The study Comparative analysis in the beef value chain: benchmarking to build the Voluntary Protocol for Monitoring Cattle Suppliers in the Cerrado (PVMFGC), developed by Proforest and Imaflora, under the Project - Responsible Demand, by the Good Growth Partnership, made possible with funds from the Global Environment Fund (GEF) through the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), offers criteria, scopes and specifics of the main initiatives that drive deforestation and conversion-free chain practices in the Cerrado biome, and supports the establishment of the criteria base for the first version of the Voluntary Protocol for Monitoring Cattle Suppliers in the Cerrado (PVMFGC). 

"The study involved mapping to identify what the requirements of society are and what companies are doing to build the PVMFGC", explained Cecilia Korber from Imaflora, one of the authors of the study. Imaflora's project coordinator, Lisandro Inakake de Souza, Proforest's project manager Pedro Zanetti, Carlos Eduardo Rigolo Lopes from Imaflora, and Cristiana Martin, Olab's consultant, also took part in the study.

The criteria and parameters used by three platforms, six public commitments, two beef chain benchmarks, two market benchmarks and the public commitment of 13 companies were analysed. The main aspects of the documents were the types of deforestation, tracking systems and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Platforms:

Forest 500
Trase
Supply Change

Public Commitments:

Term of Adjustment of Conduct (TAC), established by the Public Prosecutor’s Office of the Legal Amazon
SOS Cerrado Manifesto
New York Declaration on Forests (NYDF)
Amsterdam Declaration
Chinese Sustainable Meat Declaration
Austrian Market Declaration

Benchmarks:

Accountability Framework (AFi)
Collaboration for Forests and Agriculture (CFA) Operational Guidance

Corporate commitments:

JBS
Marfrig
Minerva
Plena Alimentos
McDonald's
Mars
Tyson Foods
Parker-Migliorini International
GPA
Carrefour
BIG Group
Walmart
Tesco