For those of us living in Europe, deforestation can seem like a distant problem. We might feel outraged, inform ourselves, sign petitions, but deep down we feel powerless in the face of something happening on the other side of the world. In reality, if we start from the destruction of forests and trace back along the chain, we discover that the last link, more often than not, is in our own hands. On our plate, in our wardrobe, even in our cup of coffee. A new report by WWF sheds light on the issue of deforestation embedded in consumption.

What is the link between deforestation and consumption

In Brazil, fires have reached extraordinary proportions. In the Amazon rainforest, 32,000 blazes were recorded in September 2020 (61 per cent more than in the same period of the previous year) and over 17,000 in October (almost 10,000 more than in 2019). Things are no better in the Pantanal, the world's largest wetland, where 4.2 million hectares were razed to the ground this year. This is the worst season since 1998, when monitoring by Inpe (Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais) began.

Amazon Watch @amazonwatch

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ICYMI: South America's Pantanal region has been hit by the worst wildfires in decades. The blazes have already consumed about 28% of the vast floodplain that stretches across parts of Brazil, Bolivia & Paraguay. They're still not completely under control. cnn.com/2020/11/13/ame…

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73 per cent of deforestation in tropical and subtropical areas is the work of those who want to make room for pasture or agricultural land, where primarily soy and oil palms are grown. These are all products that are sold and exported. And this is where the link that leads back to us is triggered. The European Union purchases 37 per cent of the crops and animal-derived products associated with the destruction of forests in their countries of origin. 60 per cent comes from Brazil, 25 per cent from Indonesia. Technically, this is known as embedded deforestation. A phenomenon of enormous proportions, responsible for 80 per cent of deforested areas. European Union consumption alone accounts for 10 per cent of global deforestation.

wwfitalia @WWFitalia

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Tanta, troppa #natura viene sacrificata in molti prodotti di largo consumo e quasi sempre non ce ne rendiamo conto. I consumi dell'#Europa sono responsabili del 10% della #deforestazione globale

Quanta #foresta abbiamo mangiato, usato o indossato oggi? 👉bit.ly/3pmZjSi

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Deforestation in a cup of coffee

Coffee is second only to water in the ranking of the world's most widely consumed beverages, with 2.5 billion cups a day. One in three is drunk in Europe, which imports 3 million tonnes from abroad. Italy, where coffee is a ritual with deep cultural significance, ranks second for imports (604,000 tonnes) but only tenth for per capita consumption, at around 6 kg per year.

This is why, WWF stresses, we can no longer afford to turn a blind eye to where it comes from. To meet global demand, coffee production will need to triple by 2050. But 60 per cent of the area potentially suitable for cultivation is currently covered by forests. If nothing is done at an international level to prevent this, an ecological catastrophe will follow. In recent years, traditional cultivation, which took place in the shade of trees with minimal impact on vegetation, has already been replaced by vast intensive plantations. More profitable, but considerably less sustainable.

Bresaola Igp made in Brazil

Anyone buying 100 grams of bresaola Igp, a symbol of Valtellina cuisine, would never imagine that it is partly made from frozen zebu haunches, a bovine bred predominantly in Brazil. It is all perfectly legal, WWF points out, because the product specification allows it. But one cannot forget that, according to some estimates, livestock farming is the cause — direct or indirect — of the destruction of 75 million hectares of Amazon. An impact greater than that of palm oil and soy combined. Between 25 and 40 per cent of the beef imported into the EU comes from Brazil; Italy ranks first in Europe for imports of fresh and frozen meat, a third of which comes from non-European countries.

Forests sacrificed for the leather industry

Beef cattle also provide 70 per cent of the raw material used by Italy's tanning industry, one of the most renowned and celebrated in the world. Italy holds second place among the leading importers of leather from Brazil; China is first. In this sector the risk of involvement with deforestation is high, yet still given little consideration. The very same companies that invest in energy efficiency, the proper management of waste and chemical materials, or water saving, WWF denounces, rarely carry out checks by tracing back to the origin of the supply chain.