Report: EU a Global Leader in Consumption of Goods From Illegally Deforested Land Valued at EUR 6 Billion Annually
Monday, March 16, 2015 - 19:30
in Earth & Climate
During 2000-12, an average of one football pitch of forest was illegally cleared every two minutes to supply the EU with beef, leather, palm oil and soy used for groceries, animal feed, leather shoes and biofuels, according to a new study released today. It finds that the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, France and the UK are by far the largest consumers of illegally sourced commodities flowing into the EU, which, as a whole, imports 25% of all soy, 18% of all palm oil, 15% of all beef and 31% of all leather in international trade stemming from illegal tropical forest destruction.