What is WWF doing about conversion of forests for agriculture and plantations?

At the intersection of responsible agriculture and conservation

Clearing for agriculture and plantations threatens some of the world’s greatest forests, endangered species such as orangutans and jaguars, and traditional lifestyles.

But this industry also sustains major economies and livelihoods. So where do we draw the line? WWF calls for...

• socially acceptable and environment-friendly production and sourcing of crops, and
  
• increased demand for goods produced under such practices.

How does WWF cooperate with stakeholders to achieve responsible sourcing and production?

We promote dialogue as a starting point to engage industry, environmental and social groups, and to develop criteria for responsible production and better practices for agriculture and plantations.

Over the last few years, such criteria have been developed for palm oil (Principles and Criteria on Sustainable Palm Oil Production) while those for soy are still being prepared. In the meantime, WWF supports the Basel Criteria (BC), a set of "pioneer" criteria for more responsible soy production.

• Find out more about the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
• Find out more about the Round Table on Responsible Soy

What is WWF asking industrial stakeholders?

1. Recognize that their activities can cause environmental damage and social problems, and commit to doing something about it
2. Identify which of their products include palm oil/soy, and to what extent
3. Promote good practices by engaging in the international roundtable discussions and start sourcing responsibly

In order to improve their sourcing practices, businesses have the option to ask for:

• RSPO palm oil until it becomes available
  
• soy that is produced according to the Basel Criteria

WWF work on palm oil and soy

We work to ensure that oil palm and soy plantations:

• do not threaten High Conservation Value Forests (HCVFs)
• are managed according to sound environmental practices
• deliver positive social impacts
• are developed under appropriate regulatory frameworks
• operate transparently

On the financial side, we try to eliminate incentives for soy production that lead to the conversion of natural habitats, and misguided investments that support environmentally destructive conversion.

To achieve these results, we collaborate with:

• governments,
• producers, investors, retailers
  
• NGOs and research centres

from around the world to develop responsible forest management and land use plans for where - and how - plantation expansion may take place.

Where does WWF work?

Our geographic priorities are driven by threatened ecoregions, large units of land or water with a distinct group of species and environmental conditions.

In these ecoregions we focus on a range of ecosystems, such as freshwater bodies and wetlands, to shield them from the impacts of irresponsible land use.

WWF doesn't just focus on palm oil and soy - our efforts to protect biodiversity from expanding agriculture also include our Agriculture and Biodiversity Initiative.

What else if WWF doing to reduce the impact of forest conversion?

WWF is active reducing the environmental impact of agriculture and plantations in:
China India Indonesia Malaysia	Argentina Brazil Colombia Paraguay