Swedish and Dutch retailers, food manufacturers, and egg and meat processors are leading the way in terms of sustainable soy use, according to a new index published by conservation charity WWF.
Swedish retailers Ica, Axfood and Coop Sweden – as well as Dutch supermarket groups Albert Heijn and Jumbo – were among Europe’s best performers in the scorecard, which measured companies against the transparency of their total soy use, use of responsibly produced soy and efforts to remove deforestation from soy supply chains.
Scandinavian feed companies Raisio Group and Lantmännen, Swedish meat processors Kronfågel and HKScan Sweden, and food groups FrieslandCampina and Bel were among the other companies to achieve WWF’s top ranking, described as “leading the way” in sustainable soy use.
Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, Unilever and Ahold also performed well.
In total, of the 16 companies described as leading the way in sustainable soy, nine were from Sweden, four were from the Netherlands, and France, Denmark and Finland had one company apiece.
Despite the positives, many other companies do not acknowledge their use of soy and have done little to address the devastating impact that irresponsible soy production can have on people and nature in vulnerable landscapes, WWF said. Of those surveyed by WWF across the food retail, manufacture, egg and meat processing and animal feed industries, almost 70 failed to provide accounts of the sustainability of their soy supply.
WWF senior advisor market change Sandra Mulder said: “WWF is pleased to see some real frontrunners, especially in the retail and dairy sectors. But it is clear that many companies take advantage of the lack of consumer awareness about soy in order to do nothing on this issue. 69 companies decided not respond to our call for transparency – this is more than half of the 133 companies approached by WWF.”
Unsustainable soy production is particularly detrimental to animal habitats in South America, WWF said. It added that, between 2000 and 2014, almost 3 million hectares of land were converted from natural vegetation in order to grow crops, mostly soy, in Brazil’s Cerrado region alone.
“Many Europeans still don’t know that they eat on average 61kg of soy per year, mostly embedded in their meat and dairy products, and what impact this has on the ecosystems of South America,” Mulder continued.
Increasing meat consumption is the main driver of soy expansion, with around 75% of the world’s soy going into animal feed. In Europe this proportion is even higher at 93%.
WWF UK agricultural commodities manager Emma Keller said: “Because of its widespread use as an animal feed, soy is a hidden ingredient in products including meat, farmed fish, dairy products like milk and cheese, and eggs – but rampant expansion of soy and poor farming practices are threatening vast areas of valuable forest and savannahs.
“We want consumers to be able to make informed choices about the impact of the food they buy. The soy scorecard helps show which supermarkets and brands are taking this issue seriously those who aren’t. Many retailers are leading the way, but it’s time to see the food service and animal feed sectors step up, as they are missing a trick in a world that now demands ethical behaviour and transparency from companies.”
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