Tesco has become one of the first companies to lend its support to a new initiative designed to help end soy-associated deforestation in one of Brazil’s most important areas of biodiversity.

A £10m contribution over five years to the Funding for Soy Farmers will help support soy farmers protect native vegetation and transition to producing soy only on existing agricultural land. The retailer has been joined by the animal nutrition business, Nutreco, and Grieg Seafood in pledging funds.

The funding will support the Cerrado to become a verified zero deforestation area for soy and help Tesco meet its commitment of achieving zero-net deforestation in its sourcing of soy.

Tesco Group CEO, Dave Lewis said: “We source much of our soy for animal feed from Brazil and the Cerrado region, so it’s only right we play a leading role in protecting this biodiverse region for future generations.”

In 2018, Tesco published its Transition Plan to achieving zero-net deforestation in its sourcing of soy. With its commitment, the retailer hopes to accelerate its progress towards sourcing its soy from verified zero deforestation sourcing areas by 2025.

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