Brasilia, 26 September 2022.–

The European Commission, through the AL-INVEST Green programme (Component 2), in collaboration with IPAM (Instituto de Pesquisa Ambiental da Amazônia), organised on 15 September in Brasilia (Brazil), the closing conference of the "The Amazon Environmental Research Institute".Dialogues on sustainability and traceability in meat and leather value chains".

These dialogues were held between March and May 2022, preceded by an analysis roundtable in December 2021. The initiative provided a forum for discussion and exchange of experiences, challenges, opportunities and future actions to boost the transparency and sustainability of the meat and leather value chains in Brazil, as well as the importance of public policies.

The conference was opened by Ignacio YbáñezAmbassador of the European Union to Brazil; Paolo GarzottiHead of Unit for Trade Relations with Latin America in the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade; and Marcella TeixeiraGeneral Coordinator of Animal Production, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply of Brazil.

In his speech, Ybáñez considered the current moment decisive for "the transition towards greener economies" and assured that "Brazil and the European Union have a unique opportunity to work together to build instruments that promote more sustainable value chains.. He also referred to the Commission's proposal to regulate deforestation-free products. He said it aims to "contribute to the fight against climate change and the loss of biodiversity associated with global deforestation" and indicated that the rules will apply equally to products produced both inside and outside the EU. "The EU contributes by consuming a significant share of the products associated with deforestation. It therefore has a responsibility to contribute to the elimination of deforestation," he said.

For his part, Paolo Garzotti considered that "traceability of meat and leather could be an important and symbolic element for a sustainable trade relationship". between Brazil and the EU. Regarding future European regulations on deforestation, he expressed confidence that Brazil already has the capacity and resources to put in place the necessary systems for compliance.

Marcella Teixeira referred to the new version of Brazil's Sectoral Plan for Adaptation and Low Carbon Emission in Agriculture and Livestock (ABC+ Plan), which in its first decade of implementation "surpassed all the goals set". He said that this plan underpins all the programmes promoted by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food Supply and demonstrates the commitment of Brazilian producers to the agendas of sustainable production and environmental protection. In this sense, he pointed out "Brazil's importance in the global context as an agri-environmental powerhouse". and advocated for the strengthening and consolidation of this role.

Traceability systems

On 2 and 3 December 2021, AL-INVEST Verde and IPAM organised a round table to analyse the situation of meat and leather value chains in Brazil. This event was followed by three technical dialogues between March and May 2022, from which, through interviews with key actors, IPAM conducted a study on traceability systems for meat and leather value chains in Brazil. During the conference, IPAM's executive director, André Guimarães, presented the results of this study, which identified 13 traceability initiatives currently implemented in the country, along with their benefits and recommendations to boost these systems.

After this presentation, the event concluded with two more round tables that analysed the role of the private sector in transparency and traceability in the meat and leather value chains, as well as the role of the public sector in promoting transparency and traceability systems to reduce the risk of deforestation.

All panellists agreed on the importance of these issues and shared good practices to address them in the future. For their part, The EU will follow up these actions with the promotion of one or two projects that will support the development of livestock traceability systems in Brazil.. In addition, contact has been initiated between the Government of the State of Minas Gerais and the EU, and the Commission is analysing possibilities of support for this and other states.