Investigative reporting can go very deep. By the end of his investigation into the supply chain of JBS, the world's largest meat processing and packaging company, Marcel Gomez realized that he and his team were part of the São Paulo-based non-profit organization. There is. Brazilian reporter Amazon knew more about where the beef it supplies to burger chains and supermarkets around the world than the company itself.
With grassroots support from trade unions and indigenous communities, he mapped the complex network of livestock farms that are responsible for illegal deforestation. He then tracked the often-illicit beef through JBS's slaughterhouses and packing plants, all the way to the freezers, shelves, and customer trays of his retail and fast-food restaurants around the world. When his detective work was finished, the signs of deforestation were clearly visible. Six of Europe's largest retail chains reacted to this and stopped purchasing JBS beef.
Gomez, 45, just won a Goldman Environmental Prize for this research. But sadly, he said in an interview: Yale University Environment 360When I went to San Francisco to pick up my prize last month, stores there still had contaminated beef on their shelves.
„We hired researchers from Europe and the United States to visit stores, find Brazilian beef and photograph seals.“
Yale University Environment 360:Why did you decide to investigate JBS?
Marcel Gomez: Now, Brazil is the world's largest exporter of beef. There are more than 200 million cattle in my country, and ranching is the biggest driver of deforestation in the Amazon, where more than 40 percent of cattle are raised. JBS is our largest beef company. They slaughter more than 12 million animals a year and export the meat to the United States, Europe, and around the world. And it's more than just a beef company. The company exports leather, such as to Germany, where it makes car seats, as well as biodiesel made from beef tallow.
e360: Could you explain how you tracked that supply chain?
Gomez: Since 2011, Brazil has enacted legislation aimed at improving transparency in the sources of beef and other agricultural products. Therefore, Brazilian reporterwas founded in 2008 and began collecting all public data related to environmental, social and labor issues. We started cross-checking our data to be able to trace the supply chain from farm to consumer.
We then combined this information with data on areas where ranchers were fined for environmental violations such as deforestation, and where there were reports of modern slavery, forced labor, and child labor. They also used satellite imagery to determine which farms experienced deforestation each year, and leveraged data on the transport of cattle from those farms to the slaughterhouses that receive them.
The second part of our research is the consumer market. JBS sells worldwide. So in 2021, we hired researchers in Brazil, as well as Europe and the United States, to visit stores looking for Brazilian beef and taking photos of seals and export tracking numbers. Through these numbers we were able to trace where the beef came from. It was very important for us to go to the supermarket and take pictures to have clear evidence of that.
We then connected both ends of the supply chain, calling supermarkets, abattoirs, traders, JBS, public health authorities and everyone else to tell them what we had discovered and ask them to take action. Several European supermarket chains quickly believed our findings and announced boycotts just as our report was published. These include Sainsbury's in the UK, Carrefour in Belgium and Ocean in France. Later, others joined them.
e360: How important is grassroots work with trade unions and indigenous peoples?
Gomez: It's very important. They lead us to the field, identify ranches, and sometimes protect us from violence. They know the routes the trucks take, the names of people they can interview, and the workers who can tell inspectors about slavery. Indigenous communities are especially aware of the environmental impacts of deforestation.
„We need to change Brazil's system and find new ways to track cows as they move between farms and stop cow washing.“
e360: You're talking about cow laundering. The idea is to raise cattle on undeforested land and move the animals to graze elsewhere for a period of time, creating the impression of a deforestation-free supply chain. Is that a big problem?
Gomez: yes. In Brazil, it is common to move cattle from farm to farm, and he does this three or four times. There may be good reasons for this, as raising cattle is a very specialized business. But it can also hide „dirty“ traces.
In theory, there are rules that prevent the trade of cattle from illegal areas to legal areas. But it's actually quite easy to do, especially if several family members are in the same business. One brother can move cattle to another brother's land without any paperwork. You can also change the boundaries of your land. For example, he changes one ranch into two, one clean and one dirty. That way you can do business with companies like JBS from a clean section.
This „laundering“ works because JBS and most other meat processors only keep records of their direct suppliers, the last step in the chain. So much of what happened before that time is hidden.
e360: Until I investigate. By the end of your study, you probably knew much more about the JBS supply chain than JBS. am I right?
Gomez: yes. I'd say it's possible. We were monitoring the supply chain from the first ranch, and we know they weren't.
e360:I wonder why. Is cow washing something that companies are encouraging, or are they turning a blind eye, or is it just ignorance that happens almost by accident?
Gomez: Well, I don't know. However, if in the future a company (such as JBS) decides to eliminate the dirty parts of its supply chain, it will lose significant market share. So there are business reasons not to monitor the entire supply chain. We need to change Brazil's system, find new ways to track cows as they move between farms, and stop washing them. Without it, JBS and other companies cannot operate sustainably.
e360: Has JBS ever tried to prevent your research from being published?
Gomez: They have done so in the past. However, their reactions have become more sensitive in recent years as the media and NGOs have used the information we have gathered to exert pressure. There is a dialogue going on now. We send our findings to them and they provide us with information. They're also starting to remove ranches from their supply chains.
„Companies like McDonald's are making statements saying they are talking to their suppliers. But we don't see much change.“
e360: How is the federal government now that Lula (Luis Inacio Lula da Silva) is back as president?
Gomez: Government agencies listen to us. There are a lot of meetings. There's a lot going on, and it's tough. And there's a lot of politics. However, farmers were found to be more law-abiding under Lula. Deforestation rates in the Amazon have declined in the past year and a half since Lula returned to power. However, major challenges remain in the Cerrado, a large savannah region to the south and east (of the Amazon River). There, you can legally cut down 80 percent of the trees on your land. That needs to change.
e360: JBS has committed to cleaning up its cattle supply chain, including eliminating deforestation by direct suppliers by 2030 and by indirect suppliers by 2035. Will these goals be achieved?
Gomez: Yes, if you properly monitor your indirect suppliers. However, they are still involved in illegal deforestation in different parts of Brazil.
Of course, if you eliminate all environmentally non-compliant suppliers, you will lose many suppliers. Therefore, it will take time to rebuild the business and we are not seeing any major changes yet.
e360: What about JBS customers? Some major retailers in Europe have banned or distanced themselves from JBS in response to your revelations. Did you get the same reaction in America?
Gomez: No, that wasn't the case. Not even Brazil. However, they said they would like more information from JBS on this issue. So at least we know the company's supply chain is monitored by retailers. Fast food companies such as McDonald's and Burger King have issued statements saying they are in dialogue with their suppliers. However, we do not see any major changes in supplier selection or exclusion.
e360: What about JBS banks and investors?
Gomez: A few days ago, a group of indigenous peoples met with one of JBS's banks in Brazil to discuss how the company was purchasing cattle raised illegally on their land.
We (at Brazilian reporter) also partners with overseas NGOs targeting banks. For example, France provided the following information: lawsuit Last year, it filed a lawsuit against BNP Paribas, the world's largest banking group, and others over possible financing of illegal deforestation by Brazil's JBS.
“We conducted the first study in Brazil of slave labor in the cattle, soybean, coffee and orange juice industries…The results for cattle were dire.”
e360: What about modern slavery, such as forced labor and child labor? I think that's another issue you investigated.
Gomez: yes. We conducted the first study in Brazil of slave labor in the cattle, soybean, coffee, and orange juice industries. We mapped the supply chains of supermarkets and fast food chains to see if they were connected to farms and other places where slave labor took place.
The cows were not doing well. We found that of the 55,000 workers freed from slavery by government inspectors since 1995, about one-third were employed in the livestock industry. Most of the people involved in clearing forests for cattle are enslaved people.
e360:What other things are you working on?
Gomez: We are focused on investigating the supply chain of Brazilian products of interest to campaign partners in other parts of the world. For example, we have investigated the labor practices of orange growers who supply juice to soft drink companies such as Coca-Cola, which sells to McDonald's and others.
At the end of last year we report Regarding Starbucks, it was revealed that some of its coffee suppliers were involved in serious human rights violations. This contradicted the company's claims of 100 percent ethical sourcing. This report is currently used for: lawsuit For Starbucks in the US, Starbucks is currently actively working on this, which is great.
e360:What do you think you'll be working on in 10 years? How will things turn out?
Gomez: I don't think Brazil can get any better. There are still many problems left. I'm making progress, but I don't think I can retire. There are probably many other things to investigate.