Sad top spot
So much rainforest is being destroyed for our consumption
© Antonio Guillem / Shutterstock
We think we’re environmentally conscious, but are we really? The WWF has determined how much rainforest is being cleared for our culinary cravings.
It’s frightening: Even if we live reasonably environmentally conscious, cycle instead of driving, do without tropical wood and only buy organic coffee, the tropical rainforest will be destroyed for us. A lot every year.
We are only too happy to point to others: to the USA with its allegedly lax attitude towards environmental protection or to China with its apparently insatiable hunger for energy and raw materials. But we are no better.
We are frontrunners in destroying the rainforest
According to the environmental organization WWF, the EU is way ahead when it comes to the destruction of tropical rainforests. On the “world rankings of forest destroyers” Europe takes the sad second place. Only China’s hunger for forests is greater, with the USA in fourth place.
In addition: Germany is at the top of the EU’s list. On average, 43,700 hectares of forest are cleared for us every year – an area half the size of Berlin. In terms of inhabitants, Germany is at least only in the middle. Most of the trees per inhabitant are felled for imports into the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark.
What is the tropical forest cleared for?
- Soy (mostly for animal feed)
- Palm oil (cheap fat, not only found in Nutella and cosmetics)
- Beef (for pasture)
- Wood
- cocoa
- coffee
The largest areas were cleared in the investigation period from 2005 to 2017 for the import of soy, palm oil and beef. But our consumption of wood, cocoa and coffee also caused the forests in Brazil, Indonesia and Paraguay to shrink.
Deforestation is fueling climate change
The deforestation not only harms the local ecosystems, it also heats up the global climate. In 2017, the EU indirectly caused 116 million tons of CO₂ emissions through “imported deforestation” WWF report.
There is at least one ray of hope: Until 2013, Europe was still number one in the “world rankings of forest destroyers.“According to WWF, the clearing has decreased significantly since then. However, within the framework of a UN resolution, a commitment was made to stop global forest destruction by 2020. This goal was not achieved.
The solution: effective laws, less meat
The WWF calls on the German government to lobby the EU Commission for “deforestation-free supply chains”. “Voluntary declarations of intent from governments and companies have so far only been implemented in individual cases,” said Christine Scholl from WWF. The EU must now make binding requirements.
But everyone can also do something to protect rainforests. According to the WWF, giving up meat is most effective: If all Germans only eat half as much of it as they do now, an area the size of Brandenburg could be saved every year.