Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks

Abstract The Brazilian government’s decision to open the Amazon biome to sugarcane expansion reignited EU concerns regarding the sustainability of Brazil’s sugar sector, hindering the ratification of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. Meanwhile, in the EU, certain conventional biofuels face stricter c...

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Autores principales:	Marco Follador, Britaldo Silveira Soares-Filho, George Philippidis, Juliana Leroy Davis, Amanda Ribeiro de Oliveira, Raoni Rajão
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/cba4eeb628e84309bb7f6196ecb00703
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:cba4eeb628e84309bb7f6196ecb007032021-12-02T14:33:57ZBrazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks10.1038/s41598-021-93349-82045-2322https://doaj.org/article/cba4eeb628e84309bb7f6196ecb007032021-07-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-93349-8https://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract The Brazilian government’s decision to open the Amazon biome to sugarcane expansion reignited EU concerns regarding the sustainability of Brazil’s sugar sector, hindering the ratification of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. Meanwhile, in the EU, certain conventional biofuels face stricter controls, whilst uncertainty surrounding the commercialisation of more sustainable advanced-biofuels renders bioethanol as a short- to medium-term fix. This paper examines Brazil’s land-use changes and associated greenhouse gas emissions arising from an EU driven ethanol import policy and projections for other 13 biocommodities. Results suggest that Brazil’s sugarcane could satisfy growing ethanol demand and comply with EU environmental criteria, since almost all sugarcane expansion is expected to occur on long-established pasturelands in the South and Midwest. However, expansion of sugarcane is also driven by competition for viable lands with other relevant commodities, mainly soy and beef. As a result, deforestation trends in the Amazon and Cerrado biomes linked to soy and beef production could jeopardize Brazil’s contribution to the Paris agreement with an additional 1 ± 0.3 billion CO2eq tonnes above its First NDC target by 2030. Trade talks with a narrow focus on a single commodity could thus risk unsustainable outcomes, calling for systemic sustainability benchmarks, should the deal be ratified.Marco FolladorBritaldo Silveira Soares-FilhoGeorge PhilippidisJuliana Leroy DavisAmanda Ribeiro de OliveiraRaoni RajãoNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-10 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Marco Follador Britaldo Silveira Soares-Filho George Philippidis Juliana Leroy Davis Amanda Ribeiro de Oliveira Raoni Rajão Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
description	Abstract The Brazilian government’s decision to open the Amazon biome to sugarcane expansion reignited EU concerns regarding the sustainability of Brazil’s sugar sector, hindering the ratification of the EU-Mercosur trade agreement. Meanwhile, in the EU, certain conventional biofuels face stricter controls, whilst uncertainty surrounding the commercialisation of more sustainable advanced-biofuels renders bioethanol as a short- to medium-term fix. This paper examines Brazil’s land-use changes and associated greenhouse gas emissions arising from an EU driven ethanol import policy and projections for other 13 biocommodities. Results suggest that Brazil’s sugarcane could satisfy growing ethanol demand and comply with EU environmental criteria, since almost all sugarcane expansion is expected to occur on long-established pasturelands in the South and Midwest. However, expansion of sugarcane is also driven by competition for viable lands with other relevant commodities, mainly soy and beef. As a result, deforestation trends in the Amazon and Cerrado biomes linked to soy and beef production could jeopardize Brazil’s contribution to the Paris agreement with an additional 1 ± 0.3 billion CO2eq tonnes above its First NDC target by 2030. Trade talks with a narrow focus on a single commodity could thus risk unsustainable outcomes, calling for systemic sustainability benchmarks, should the deal be ratified.
format	article
author	Marco Follador Britaldo Silveira Soares-Filho George Philippidis Juliana Leroy Davis Amanda Ribeiro de Oliveira Raoni Rajão
author_facet	Marco Follador Britaldo Silveira Soares-Filho George Philippidis Juliana Leroy Davis Amanda Ribeiro de Oliveira Raoni Rajão
author_sort	Marco Follador
title	Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
title_short	Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
title_full	Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
title_fullStr	Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
title_full_unstemmed	Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks
title_sort	brazil’s sugarcane embitters the eu-mercosur trade talks
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/cba4eeb628e84309bb7f6196ecb00703
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Brazil’s sugarcane embitters the EU-Mercosur trade talks

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