A group of 20 institutions abandoned the largest private agreement for the preservation of the Amazon on 5 January 2026. Among them are some of the world’s largest grain traders operating in Brazil, which are no longer part of the pact.
The so-called Soy Moratorium prohibited the purchase and commercialisation of soybeans produced on land deforested in the Brazilian Amazon after 22 July 2008. Between 2002 and 2008, municipalities producing soy in the Amazon cleared, on average, 1.06 million hectares per year. After the Moratorium was implemented, this figure fell to around 300,000 hectares per year — a reduction of 71.7%. Currently, less than 3% of soy produced in the Amazon biome has been grown on areas deforested after July 2008.
Since 2012, Brazil has been the world’s largest soybean producer and exporter. According to National Supply Company (Conab), Brazilian farmers produced approximately 171,4 million tonnes of soybeans and exported around 106,6 million tonnes in 24/25 season. The country also contains the largest portion of the Amazon biome, covering about 420 million hectares.
Abiove remains committed to ensuring access for Brazilian soybeans and their by-products to international markets, for the benefit of the entire value chain,”
Legal challenges to soy sourcing for feed
Over the past year, the Soy Moratorium has been the target of several lawsuits filed by producer associations in the Amazon region. These entities argue that the Moratorium imposes requirements that go beyond Brazilian environmental legislation and favours the formation of a “traders’ cartel”.
The legality of the Soy Moratorium, however, has been upheld by Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court (STF), the country’s highest court. Even so, a law passed by the state of Mato Grosso came into force on 1 January, withdrawing tax benefits from companies participating in the Moratorium.
In response, companies left the agreement and even removed their logos from the official Soy Moratorium website. Among them are Cargill, Bunge, ADM (Archer Daniels Midland), Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), COFCO International, Amaggi, Caramuru, CHS, Dual, Viterra, among others.
The Moratorium’s website now lists only the National Association of Cereal Exporters (Anec) and the names of 10 commodity trading companies as participants.
The Brazilian Association of Vegetable Oil Industries (Abiove) confirmed also its withdrawal, effectively hollowing out the agreement it had led alongside Greenpeace for the past 2 decades. In a statement, the association, which represents the trading companies, praised the role of the Moratorium in Brazil’s environmental preservation, but did not detail the reasons for leaving the pact. “Abiove remains committed to ensuring access for Brazilian soybeans and their by-products to international markets, for the benefit of the entire value chain,” the association said.
Stakeholder reactions & impact on feed supply
Greenpeace criticised the collective withdrawal: “What ended on 1 January were tax incentives in Mato Grosso. By announcing their exit from the agreement, Abiove and its members chose to give up a commitment that helped reduce deforestation in the Amazon to preserve their tax benefits,” said Greenpeace Brazil coordinator Rômulo Batista.
In December, Reuters reported that ADM and Bunge were the largest beneficiaries, each receiving around R$1.5 billion, according to Sérgio Ricardo, president of the Mato Grosso State Audit Court.
Abiove said that traders will continue to comply with environmental requirements imposed by international buyers, even without the Soy Moratorium.
“Abiove trusts Brazilian authorities to fully implement a new regulatory framework to safeguard the international commitments assumed by Brazil, as well as to ensure the security and credibility of Brazilian products in their consumer markets.”
Leaving the pact means assuming environmental and reputational risks and delivering to consumers soy linked to post-2008 deforestation,” – Greenpeace Brazil coordinator Rômulo Batista
Brazilian legislation & feed supply
From now on, Brazilian environmental legislation will be the sole constraint on deforestation in the Amazon biome.
Considered one of the strictest in the world, Brazil’s Forest Code requires landowners in the Amazon biome to preserve at least 80% of their properties under native vegetation.
If forest clearance is sought, farmers must obtain authorisation from the National Environment Council (Conama), comply with multiple rules and have no outstanding environmental liabilities, such as fines or sanctions.
Reactions to the Soy Moratorium’s weakening
The governor of Mato Grosso, Mauro Mendes, celebrated the weakening of the Soy Moratorium.
“This is a victory, an achievement for the state of Mato Grosso, because we had requirements here that were harming our rural producers, creating rules far beyond what Brazilian law establishes,” he said.
The Mato Grosso Association of Soybean and Maize Producers (Aprosoja MT) also praised Abiove’s decision and that of major agricultural traders to leave the Soy Moratorium.
“For many years, we were harmed by a private agreement that was incompatible with national legislation, asymmetrical in its application and unfair to those who comply with the Brazilian Forest Code,” the association said.
Aprosoja MT cited the Supreme Court’s decision recognising the validity of the Mato Grosso state law as “an important reinforcement of legal certainty, free enterprise and the sovereignty of rural producers”.
Ongoing legal disputes
It also referred to an investigation by Brazil’s antitrust authority, CADE (Administrative Council for Economic Defence), into suspected cartel behaviour and potential violations of economic order in the context of the Moratorium.
On another legal front, the federal government recently filed yet another appeal with the Supreme Court seeking to preserve the Moratorium and suspend the Mato Grosso law.
Environmental concerns
Greenpeace’s representative argues that the Moratorium should be maintained, as it aligns with commitments made to investors and international markets.
“Leaving the pact means assuming environmental and reputational risks and delivering to consumers soy linked to post-2008 deforestation,” Batista added.
WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) Brazil stated the decision by Abiove-associated companies to abandon the Soy Moratorium represents a “serious and unjustifiable setback” for the country.
In an official statement, the organisation said the move weakens one of the main instruments against deforestation in the Amazon and increases environmental, climate and economic risks worldwide.
“This is not the end of an agreement imposed by law, but rather business decisions that ignore positive results and transfer environmental costs to society, with tax incentives funded by public resources,” said WWF-Brazil executive director Mauricio Voivodic.
According to the organisation, these companies are sending Brazil and the international community a clear message of institutional and environmental regression.
