Bunge and ADM board members: vote yes for thriving ecosystems!
Last year the Amazon Rainforest lost 11,000 square km of forest – equivalent to three football fields every minute. Meanwhile other biomes in Latin America such as Argentina's Gran Chaco and Brazil's Cerrado are being destroyed at a breathtaking pace to clear land for industrial agriculture like soy. Destruction of these ecosystems is driving wildlife to extinction, worsening climate change, and forcing local communities off of their land.
U.S. Agribusiness giants Bunge and ADM are playing a lead role in driving this problem, as they source huge quantities of soy from farmers who are actively clearing native vegetation. Given their market share and influence, if both Bunge and ADM change, we will have a critical mass to tip the entire agribusiness industry and catalyze a historic shift towards forest protection and regenerative agriculture.
ADM and Bunge are consistently found to be at the front lines of this environmental destruction through their soy supply chains. Mighty Earth's soy and cattle tracker has consistently given them failing grades. As two of the largest soy traders in the world, ADM and Bunge have unique power to both cause and prevent further destruction brought about by soy production in Latin America.
Just weeks ago, 160 of the world's largest food companies like Tesco, Unilever, and McDonalds came together to demand that their suppliers stop sourcing soy from environmentally sensitive areas in Latin America. Regulation is underway in Europe that would also block imports of soy from these regions.
Shareholders recognize that destroying the environment is bad for our planet and bad for business. Earlier this year, over 65% of shareholders- including Blackrock- voted in favor of a shareholder proposal urging Procter & Gamble to adopt strong forest protections. Now shareholders are calling on Bunge and ADM to take the lead.
Join us in calling on Bunge and ADM's Board to vote YES on the shareholder proposal calling for stronger action to protect our planet.
