Leading collagen manufacturer fuelling deforestation crisis in Paraguay

Tuesday 7 October, 2024, London – An investigation published today by Global Witness has uncovered alarming connections between the supply chain of one of the world’s largest collagen producers and extensive deforestation and human rights abuses in Paraguay's Gran Chaco region.

The new investigation found that beef giants Minerva Foods and Frigorífico Concepción are supplied by sixteen cattle companies estimated to be responsible for over 75,000 hectares of deforestation in Paraguay’s Gran Chaco forest in the last three years, an area almost the size of New York City.

Global Witness has traced the supply chains of collagen from Paraguay to one of the world’s largest collagen companies, Rousselot. Our research suggests Rousselot was supplied with 3,000 tonnes of cattle hides sourced from Frigorífico Concepción in Paraguay since 2022, according to trade data.

Paraguay’s Gran Chaco is a vital ecosystem for both climate change mitigation and biodiversity. The forest, which spreads over Paraguay, Bolivia, Argentina and Brazil, is South America’s second largest forest behind the Amazon. It is also home to the Ayoreo Totobiegosode, one of the last voluntarily isolated Indigenous groups in South America.

Cheap land, low taxes and weak environmental laws for cattle ranchers contribute to Paraguay's deforestation crisis. One farm manager Global Witness spoke to in the Chaco said that compared to Brazil, land in Paraguay was cheap and there were fewer NGOs to scrutinise what they were doing.

Paraguay's 1973 Forest Law requires ranchers to preserve only 25% of forest cover on their property, effectively allowing many to clear vast swathes of land.

Over 50 years later, current President Santiago Peña continues to stand firmly behind the cattle industry.

If current deforestation rates continue in the country, Global Witness’ analysis suggests the Paraguayan Chaco could cease to exist by 2080.

Deforestation in the region is also driven by global demand for cattle and its byproducts.

In recent years, collagen has become a major wellness trend, with celebrities, athletes, and influencers touting its skin-enhancing and performance-boosting benefits. The main ingredient in collagen is found in cattle hides or bones and pig skins.

Rousselot advertises itself as “the global leader in collagen-based solutions”, claiming that its flagship brand Peptan is “the world’s leading collagen peptide brand”.

Deforestation is not only an existential threat to the forest itself, but also its people.  A quarter of the total deforestation found in this investigation – over 18,000 hectares, itself an area larger than Paris – has occurred on farms overlapping with an area claimed by the Ayoreo Totobiegosode. The cattle companies operating in this area sell to both Minerva and Frigorífico Concepción.

Taguide Picanerai , a spokesperson the Ayoreo Totobiegosode, an Indigenous group in the Chaco, said:

“Meat companies must stop buying from producers that occupy Indigenous territories. Many of these farms don’t benefit anyone except the owner [of the land] and a few others. And it just creates more need for the people in our territory, who are poor.

“If the Ayoreo ceased to exist, Paraguay would lose a part of its fundamental spirit. If our territory were lost, the country would also lose a huge conservation asset.”  

The findings come at a critical time, as the EU's landmark deforestation law faces uncertainty due to calls from business and several countries, including Paraguay, for its implementation to be postponed. The EUDR seeks to ensure that key products traded and consumed within the EU and globally do not contribute to deforestation and forest degradation.

The investigation reveals the need for regulation and the failure of European markets and companies to self-regulate against environmental and human rights abuses within their supply chains.

Charlie Hammans, who authored the report, said:

 “Collagen supplements may promise eternal youth to Western consumers - but they are also turbocharging a deforestation crisis in Paraguay that has seen enormous swathes of climate-critical forest wiped out in just three years.

“Our findings are a crucial reminder of the urgent need for laws like the EU's landmark anti-deforestation law, which will help to ensure that products used to make collagen, along with a range of products from beef burgers to car tyres, are sourced from deforestation-free supply chains.”