Soy fields encroach on Brazilian rainforests accelerating deforestation and destroying biodiversity. Life is replaced by industrial agriculture.On Wednesday 8 June, the first bags of certified “responsible” soy will be issued to companies such as Ahold and FrieslandCampina, during a ceremony in Rotterdam. This voluntary certification scheme is an initiative of the World Wildlife Fund and will be marketed by the Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS). One certificate represents one tonne of soy products: beans, flour or oil. [1]
However, the new label has repeatedly been dismissed by hundreds of organisations as “greenwashing”. Networks including Friends of the Earth International, Global Forest Coalition and Food & Water Watch wrote a letter in March this year to warn supermarkets not to cooperate with this misleading label. 23,000 consumers signed an email petition with a similar message. [2]
“This soylabel is a typical example of consumer deceit”, says Nina Holland of Corporate Europe Observatory. “Importing soy for industrial livestock farming in the Netherlands is inherently unsustainable. Apart from that the soy is produced with intensive use of agrotoxins. Even genetically manipulated soy that is resistant to the herbicide Roundup can be called ‘responsible’ according to this new label”, she adds.
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The Free 