Carrefour halts beef supplies from two JBS slaughterhouses linked to deforestation on Indigenous land in the Amazon
Link to report
Français: Carrefour Nous Enfume
English: Carrefour’s Smokescreen
It comes as Mighty Earth launches a new report and campaign on Amazon Day calling on the French retail giant to urgently act to clean up its supply chains and cut ties with industrial meat and soy traders driving deforestation.
French supermarket giant Carrefour has suspended beef supplies from two JBS slaughterhouses in the Amazon and is investigating evidence of sales of deforestation-tainted beef found in its stores in Brazil. It follows an investigation from Mighty Earth, which found that two-thirds of meat products surveyed in Carrefour stores in Brazil were sourced from JBS and 12% were sourced from two slaughterhouses in Rondônia. According to a CCCA (Center for Climate Crime Analysis) report, those JBS facilities in Rondonia are connected to illegal cattle farms on the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Indigenous territory in Rondônia state. 1
Mighty Earth surveyed 102 beef products found in six Carrefour stores in Brazil, including three stores in São Paulo, and found twelve beef products came from two JBS slaughterhouses in Rondônia state that are linked to illegal deforestation on the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau land in the Amazon. Brazil-based JBS is the world’s largest meat processor has been repeatedly linked to widespread deforestation in the Amazon and other key biomes such as the Cerrado and the Pantanal.
The suspension of JBS slaughterhouses follows action in December by seven European supermarkets to suspend JBS or Brazilian beef in response to a previous Mighty Earth investigation with Reporter Brasil.
Responding to Mighty Earth’s new report a Carrefour spokesperson said:
“We take note of the report you sent us on Tuesday 30 August. It includes a lot of detailed information, particularly concerning more than a hundred products that Mighty has investigated. We are integrating these elements into our alert process in accordance with our vigilance plan and are launching an investigation into all the data transmitted.”
“As with every alert we receive, the cases you raise require careful consideration in accordance with the Group’s alert process. We will take appropriate action based on the results and will get back to you with the decisions taken.”
“In parallel to this investigation process, we are already taking preventive measures by suspending all marketing of beef from the two JBS slaughterhouses in Rondônia, Pimenta Bueno and Vilhena, highlighted in your report.”
On Amazon Day, Mighty Earth is launching a new campaign in France – ‘Carrefour Nous Enfume’ – with advertising and grassroots events – along with a new report calling on the supermarket to show leadership and urgently address deforestation, climate and water pollution, and land-grabbing in its meat supply chains. It follows weeks of record-breaking fires by meat industry interests across the Amazon and other precious biomes, with more fires in August than in any month in five years.2 The Brazilian National Institute for Space Research, INPE, recorded a new record for August of 3,358 fires on Monday 22 August. 3
Boris Patentreger, Mighty Earth’s Senior Director, France, said:
“We’re glad Carrefour acted on our investigation when it comes to these two JBS slaughterhouses, but we must be clear that Carrefour beef is still linked to vast deforestation. Shuffling slaughterhouses doesn’t do a whole lot to protect the Amazon when JBS is still driving deforestation, land-grabbing, and climate pollution on a massive scale.
“The findings show those most affected by this illegal deforestation are the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Indigenous people whose ancestral lands are being destroyed and burned for cattle ranching to supply JBS slaughterhouses and to produce beef for Carrefour’s supermarket shelves.”
“If Carrefour is serious about selling its customers sustainable meat, it needs to drop JBS, period.”
Sébastien Mabile of Seattle Avocats, counsel for Mighty Earth said:
“The findings of the report provide material evidence of this link between JBS, Carrefour’s main supplier in Brazil, and deforestation. Given the extreme seriousness of these risks, Carrefour should have been aware of them. The release of Mighty Earth’s report now obliges Carrefour to halt all activity with this company, as the vigilance must be applied to all risks and not just to some of JBS’ slaughterhouses.”
Mighty Earth’s new campaign challenges Carrefour to:
- Immediately cut ties with key corporations most responsible for deforestation and destruction of natural ecosystems, such as JBS, Bunge and Cargill.
- Carrefour has set a new target to reduce deforestation in its meat supply chains by“ 50% by 2026 and by 100% by 2030, but only in “critical areas.” This is not enough ambitious enough.
- Adopt and implement a clear “Zero Deforestation, Zero Conversion” policy that improves the transparency and traceability of its entire meat and soybean supply chains with immediate effect.
- Set clear policies to require suppliers to reduce their emissions of methane and other forms of climate pollution, and to make the transition to sustainable animal protein, using regenerative agricultural practices.
- Increase sales of plant-based proteins and meat alternatives as part of a broader effort to significantly reduce sales of animal protein, reaching at least 15% sales by 2030.
- Increase Carrefour’s support for independent meat supply chain monitoring in Brazil.
In March, Carrefour’s competitor, French supermarket chain Groupe Casino was sued in the Court of Paris for links to deforestation-tainted beef supplied by JBS from farms on Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau Indigenous land. It was a legal first by Mighty Earth and a coalition of Indigenous representatives and civil society groups campaigning to end deforestation and human rights abuses in global supply chains. According to evidence gathered by the Center for Climate Crime Analysis (CCCA) for the case, Groupe Casino regularly bought beef from the two slaughterhouses owned by JBS in Rondônia. 4
Ends
For more information or to arrange an interview contact:
Carole Mitchell, Senior Director of Communications
+44 7917 105000
Notes to editors:
1 CCCA (2022) (Centre for Climate Crime Analysis)
2 Number of Brazil Amazon fires hits five-year high in August, AP
3 Real time satellite monitoring of active fires by The Brazilian Space Agency, INPE
4 Amazonian groups sue French supermarket chain over deforestation, BBC
- “The Territory,” an award-winning new film, partially shot by the Uru-Eu-Wau-Wau tells the story of the fight to save their forest home from further deforestation. Watch here
About Mighty Earth
Mighty Earth is a global advocacy organization working to defend a living planet. Our goal is to protect half of Earth for Nature and secure a climate that allows life to flourish. We are obsessed with impact and aspire to be the most effective environmental advocacy organization in the world. Our team has achieved transformative change by persuading leading industries to dramatically reduce deforestation and climate pollution throughout their global supply chains in palm oil, rubber, cocoa, and animal feed, while improving livelihoods for Indigenous and local communities across the tropics.
