Ceri M

The largest cause of deforestation is, and has been, the expansion of farmland. But the production of which products, in particular, has been driving this in recent decades? A recent study, published in Nature Food by Chandrakant Singh and Martin Persson, answered this question. Beef was, by far, the largest driver, accounting for 41% of the total. The second-largest was oilseeds, dominated by soy and palm oil. The other large drivers were forest plantations and cereal production. This loss has been very geographically concentrated. More than half of deforestation for beef production occurred in Brazil. Most other cattle pasture expansion happened in Brazil’s neighbors in Latin America. Almost all of the world’s demand for palm oil has been met by just two countries — Indonesia and Malaysia — and this shows in the deforestation data. Forest plantations have been a large driver in parts of Asia and North America, particularly in the United States, Canada, and China. Across most other products — cereals, root crops, and cash crops such as fruit, nuts, coffee, and cocoa — it’s in Africa where the most forest has been lost. The scale of this deforestation is often hard to grasp. But the data also shows us that change is possible: there have been successful programs and campaigns to reduce deforestation for some products, such as palm oil. The world could achieve the same for other products, but this relies on our understanding of which products — and where — are driving deforestation in the first place.