Mowi soy pledge to preserve rain forests

The new commitment will reduce pressure on the forests of Brazil and secure a more sustainable production of important feed ingredients, said the company.

The move also marks a shift away from suppliers that still trade with products grown on recently deforested lands.

As part of its sustainability strategy, Mowi said its supply chain will not include soy grown on legally deforested land.

The decision makes Mowi the first company worldwide that will use only clean, deforestation-free suppliers of Brazilian soy, the Bergen based group said on its website.

Game-changer

Mowi chief sustainability officer Catarina Martins said: ‘This is a game-changer for the soy and feed industry supplying aquaculture.

‘For many years now, Mowi has only sourced soy from non-deforested areas certified under ProTerra, the Roundtable for Responsible Soy or equivalent.

‘Now, after working closely with our suppliers, they have all committed to only obtain deforestation-free soy from 2021.

‘This commitment entails that Mowi’s suppliers will not trade soy that is grown on land deforested from Q3 2021, including soy grown on legally deforested land.’

Main suppliers

Mowi’s three main suppliers of non-GM ProTerra certified soy protein concentrate are Caramuru, Imcopa and CJ Selecta.

Martins added: ‘With the current situation in Brazil, where the protection of the Amazon and the Cerrado is being deliberately dismantled, we must make sure that we do not trade with soy suppliers that contribute to this unacceptable development.

‘With this announcement, we ensure that our suppliers as well as our supply chains are clean.

‘As the only fully integrated seafood company in the world, we recognise the importance of controlling the value chain.

‘It is therefore extremely important to us that our suppliers have a clean value chain and do not source any crops from deforested areas, even for products that are supplied to other companies.’