Poisoning the environment The meat industry’s growing demand for soya and other feed crops is leading to increasing use of ever more dangerous chemicals to extend the growing season and increase yields. In Brazil46 and Argentina47 it is estimated that over 95% of the soya grown is genetically modified (GM), which goes hand-in-hand with intensive use of herbicides and other hazardous chemical inputs.48 Data from the FAO show that pesticide use per unit area has increased by over 250% in both countries since the introduction of GM crops in the mid-1990s.49 Brazil is now reportedly the largest buyer of highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) in the world,50 with official data showing a significant spike in approvals of new and environmentally hazardous pesticide products under the governments of Michel Temer and current president Jair Bolsonaro.51 In 2019, over the course of just three months, 500 million honey bees died in Brazil, with evidence pointing towards the cause being a huge increase in approvals of new pesticides containing known bee-killing chemicals such as Fipronil. Nearly two-thirds of the country’s spending on HHPs is linked to soya production, primarily for animal feed.52 Fipronil, which is not approved for use in the EU,53 is widely used in Brazil on soya crops.54
Above: 1 May 2004, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil: Pesticide warehouse. ©Greenpeace/Rodrigo Baléia 24 March 2019, Barreiras, Bahia, Brazil, 11°53’37.26” S 45°36’5.64” W: Tractor spraying crops. ©Victor Moriyama/Greenpeace
61
