Soy is one of the most controversial, and profitable foods on the market, and its dramatic effects on people, climate, agriculture, and economics are indisputable. -Emma Talamantes
The controversy about soy transcends beyond whether or not it is proficient at replacing meat and dairy in the vegetarian diet or whether or not it negatively affects the endocrine system from functioning properly. The conversation about soy’s negative effects on our planet is one we just seem to not be having, although on the grandiose scale it is an important conversation to have.
Soy is not only used for tofu and soy milk. It is also used to feed cows and other animals that Americans consume regularly, and for much cheaper. In places like South America, many people are forced to face the reality of the devastation that this large demand for soy has caused. Soy is grown in fragile ecosystems that should be preserved. Four million hectares (approximately 10 million acres) of forests are destroyed annually in South America. In Brazil alone, which is well known for it’s thriving amazon, 2.4 million acres of those four are destroyed. This conversion from forests to soy plantations in South America also contributes to the carbon emissions, while the Amazon rainforest alone contains 9-14 years’ worth of our current global carbon emissions.
The large scale production of soy also creates dangerous runoff from fertilizers. Towns across South America have lost access to fresh water because of its contamination due to poor farming regulations. Most of these towns are in farming regions and contain poor indigenous farmers who are already being pushed out and exploited by large corporations in order to grow more soy. It is common practice for corporations to falsify contracts, essentially stealing land, from indigenous people who hold little to no power in their communities. This also devastates the local food supply, seeing as these farmers feed their communities.
“Soybeans will be one of the crops that suffers from climate change, if current production practices stay the same.” (WWF). By 2070 the area where soy can be produced would drop by 60% due to hot summers and droughts. The world’s population is also said to be likely to peak by 2070, resulting in an even higher demand for soy and for agricultural jobs. Due to recent population spikes alone, soy production increased by 70% from 2001 to 2011.
I tried to research what regulations are or have been in effect in South American countries regarding soy and found very little information on the topic. Most of my research came up with articles about discussing policies that could help regulate soy production, I could not find exact facts. I did come up with several articles about the defiance of Indigenous people in Brazil who come from some of the largest soy production areas, many of whom have been pushed off their land, sometimes violently. In 1988 in Brazil, indigenous people were given rights that ensured the returning of their land but “due to the expansion of soy productions there has been little to no progress in meeting these legal obligation” (Salil Shetty, Special to CNN). According to her research, cases regarding these injustices have been known to drag on over the course of people’s entire lives, resulting in no consequences for the companies taking land from these people.
Soy is not only used for tofu and soy milk. It is also used to feed cows and other animals that Americans consume regularly, and for much cheaper. In places like South America, many people are forced to face the reality of the devastation that this large demand for soy has caused. Soy is grown in fragile ecosystems that should be preserved. Four million hectares (approximately 10 million acres) of forests are destroyed annually in South America. In Brazil alone, which is well known for it’s thriving amazon, 2.4 million acres of those four are destroyed. This conversion from forests to soy plantations in South America also contributes to the carbon emissions, while the Amazon rainforest alone contains 9-14 years’ worth of our current global carbon emissions.
The large scale production of soy also creates dangerous runoff from fertilizers. Towns across South America have lost access to fresh water because of its contamination due to poor farming regulations. Most of these towns are in farming regions and contain poor indigenous farmers who are already being pushed out and exploited by large corporations in order to grow more soy. It is common practice for corporations to falsify contracts, essentially stealing land, from indigenous people who hold little to no power in their communities. This also devastates the local food supply, seeing as these farmers feed their communities.
“Soybeans will be one of the crops that suffers from climate change, if current production practices stay the same.” (WWF). By 2070 the area where soy can be produced would drop by 60% due to hot summers and droughts. The world’s population is also said to be likely to peak by 2070, resulting in an even higher demand for soy and for agricultural jobs. Due to recent population spikes alone, soy production increased by 70% from 2001 to 2011.
I tried to research what regulations are or have been in effect in South American countries regarding soy and found very little information on the topic. Most of my research came up with articles about discussing policies that could help regulate soy production, I could not find exact facts. I did come up with several articles about the defiance of Indigenous people in Brazil who come from some of the largest soy production areas, many of whom have been pushed off their land, sometimes violently. In 1988 in Brazil, indigenous people were given rights that ensured the returning of their land but “due to the expansion of soy productions there has been little to no progress in meeting these legal obligation” (Salil Shetty, Special to CNN). According to her research, cases regarding these injustices have been known to drag on over the course of people’s entire lives, resulting in no consequences for the companies taking land from these people.