The potential of ‘radical transparency’
Private-sector and government representatives agreed that new approaches to supply-chain transparency – ‘ radical transparency ’ – have the potential to bring about transformative change, with an unprecedented wealth of information on the links in supply chains and how supply chains affect deforestation in producing jurisdictions. Participants discussed how to bring about step changes in the capacity of supply-chain actors to meet zero deforestation and sustainability commitments. They examined incentives for encouraging governments in consumer and producer countries to cooperate. Tools such as the platforms launched by Trase to collect and analyse data and information can help purchasers to develop better sourcing strategies and governments to develop policies in the forestry sector and commodity trade.
The challenge of global deforestation
The international trade in commodities such as soy, palm oil and beef is valued at billions of dollars. These commodities trade along complex supply chains that often have adverse social and environmental impacts – especially in developing countries. Over the past decade, for example, agricultural expansion has caused two-thirds of tropical deforestation, which in turn has accelerated climate change and threatened the rights and livelihoods of indigenous peoples and communities that depend on forests. Consumers and markets around the world are demanding greater sustainability in producing and trading agricultural commodities.
Governments in consumer and producer countries have recently committed to reduce deforestation: in the New York Declaration on Forests (2014), the Amsterdam Declaration and the UNFCCC Paris Agreement (2015). Similarly, hundreds of companies have committed to achieving zero net deforestation in major supply chains by 2020 as part of the Consumer Goods Forum. There are, however, many challenges to achieving zero-deforestation commitments. Deforestation driven by commodity production has so far shown no signs of abating. Efforts to achieve sustainable supply chains are hindered by weak law enforcement, lack of land-use planning and insufficient monitoring.
While there has been significant progress in the availability and use of satellite imagery to monitor deforestation in recent years, commodity trade flows continue to be difficult to untangle and track. The routes commodities take and the actors involved are known for only a fraction of the global trade in commodities, such as for certified products. Information is not easily accessible nor compiled in useful ways. Thus, the many public and private-sector actors involved in trading, transforming or consuming such commodities are often not aware of the adverse effects and business risks associated with their activities.
There is an urgent need to better understand complex supply chain connections to stop deforestation associated with traded commodities, and to minimise and avoid the associated environmental and social risks. A clear understanding of where commodities originate, how they move around the globe and where they end up will help to identify strategic targets and entry points to achieve more sustainable global supply chains.
Trase side event panel during COP22
Source: EU REDD Facility
Trase side event panel during COP22
Source: EU REDD Facility