McDonald’s Linked to Amazon Deforestation in New Report
A Brazilian group alleges that companies supplying beef to the restaurant chain have bought cattle originating from illegally cleared ranches.
A cattle farm in Sao Felix do Xingu, Para state, Brazil, Oct. 2, 2021.
Photographer: Jonne Roriz/BloombergMcDonald’s Corp. has ties to deforestation and labor abuses in Brazil’s Pantanal wetlands and in the Amazon rainforest, which plays a crucial role in regulating the world’s climate, according to a report published Wednesday by Reporter Brasil, an independent research group focused on environmental and labor issues.
In its report, Reporter Brasil reviewed several cases in which beef from illegally cleared ranches was shuffled between farms to hide its true origin, then shipped to slaughterhouses owned by companies that supply McDonald’s. Unions in Europe are piggybacking on the report to demand that McDonald’s start annually disclosing detailed risks of human rights and environmental abuses in its supply chain, citing a French vigilance law that environmental groups hope will be a model to other countries.