Reuters 14 Aug 09;
SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's top leather exporter and second-largest beef exporter, Bertin, said on Thursday it has signed a pact with environmental campaigner Greenpeace to refuse purchases of cattle reared in recently-deforested parts of the Amazon.
The company will register and map all farms from which it buys cattle directly within the next six months and by 2011, expand systems that enable it to trace cattle from the farms to its facilities, including rearing and nursery farms.
"We already had a system to avoid buying from illegally deforested areas, now we're including legally cleared areas," said Bertin's Vice President Fernando Falco.
"We're just speeding up our (monitoring) system and adhering to a cause which society is demanding."
The announcement comes after meatpacker Marfrig signed a similar pact with Mato Grosso state's government. The state has the biggest cattle herd in Brazil.
Bertin's initiative is not restricted to the state; it includes the whole Amazon biome, where it has seven units -- four in Para, one in Rondonia and two in Mato Grosso.
It will use satellite images to map cattle ranches and ban purchases from areas deforested after June 2009.
"This is an opportunity for Brazil to conquer new markets because, besides having the most competitive beef, it will come from a sustainable cattle production system," Falco said.
Brazil's beef sector has been criticized for its role in deforestation of the world's largest rain forest.
Greenpeace this year released a report linking the beef business with illegal deforestation, leading key Brazilian retailers to say they would halt purchases from some suppliers.
Bertin's agreement, signed with Greenpeace, is based on a similar accord launched by the soybean industry in 2006. But Falco acknowledged that cattle herds are more difficult to monitor than soy farming.
The four largest soy trading houses in Brazil account for around 90 percent of the market, while top beef companies have only 30 percent of sales on the domestic market.
"Given the sheer size of Bertin's operations, this commitment will have a significant impact on driving down Amazon deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions," Greenpeace said in a statement.
(Reporting by Inae Riveras; Editing by Marguerita Choy)
