Active fires were detected on the Fazenda Perdizes farm on August 24, 2021 in Porto dos Gaúchos, Mato Grosso. The property is owned and operated by SLC Agrícola, the largest soybean producer in Brazil. Fazenda Perdizes consists of areas held under SLC Agrícola’s ownership and through joint ventures with other companies. The recently detected fires …
A new report by Chain Reaction Research (CRR) member Aidenvironment highlights 133,000 hectares (ha) of deforestation since 2016 committed by 10 companies in the industrial tree sectors of Indonesia and Malaysia. These ten companies all supply palm oil to some of the world’s largest palm oil trader/refiners, which operate under No Deforestation, No Peat, No …
Japanese bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) is the target of the first ever climate change investor resolution that takes issue with high-risk commodities that cause deforestation. In March, Kiko Network and three individuals with the Rainforest Action Network (RAN), Market Forces, and 350.org Japan filed a resolution with MUFG, calling for the bank to …
In a landmark decision, on May 26, 2021, a Dutch civil court ordered Shell to cut its CO2 emissions by net 45 percent in 2030 compared to 2019 levels. The decision states that the reduction obligation relates to the Shell’s entire energy portfolio and to the aggregate volume of all emissions (Scope 1 to 3), …
Indonesia is among the world’s largest mining countries. It is also a country of conglomerate companies with interests in various businesses, including deforestation-related sectors such as oil palm, industrial trees and mining. This report aims to shed a light on overlapping company groups in the Indonesian palm oil and mining sectors. Some large palm oil …
Despite the increase in palm oil refining capacity covered by No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation (NDPE) policies, eight of 25 largest refiners are still operating in the leakage market. This report analyzes the financiers and investors in these companies, updating a study published by Chain Reaction Research (CRR) in 2018. The financial institutions are …
Indonesia’s government responded to the country’s loss of forests and peatlands and the 2015 fire and haze crisis with a forest-clearing ban, a moratorium on issuing of licenses for new oil palm plantations, and tightened peatland regulation. This report analyzes gaps in the moratoria amid looser environmental legislation and recently rising palm oil prices, and …
The palm oil value chain contains a number of stakeholder groups, such as smallholders, large plantations, refineries, the fast-moving consumer good (FMCG) industry, the oleochemical and pharmaceutical industry, and the retail and food service sector. In every step of the chain, palm oil is further processed or is embedded in products which contain other ingredients, …
Chain Reaction Research (CRR) and Forests & Finance held a webinar on July 22nd, 2021 looking into their recent research of who provides financing to companies in palm oil supply chains tied to deforestation. The session covered CRR’s report on the share of palm oil refining covered by NDPE policies. Forests & Finance shared an …
Japan is a large buyer of palm oil and timber products from Indonesia and Malaysia. While the country has promoted sustainability ahead of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, sourcing policies are still inadequate. Against this backdrop, Japan’s large demand for palm oil and plywood is linked to deforestation and leakage markets for both commodities. Japan is …
On April 15th, the Zoological Society of London SPOTT (ZSL SPOTT), Chain Reaction Research (CRR), and Orbitas hosted a webinar to discuss financiers should analyze a broad range of risks amongst palm oil companies in Indonesia as well as the whole supply chain to inform their ESG investment and lending strategies. Combining company transparency and …
CRR research has found that South Korean companies are significant leakage players as both developers of plantations and buyers of palm oil products. Six South Korean plantation owners have significant non-compliance issues linked, to environmental, social, and human rights issues. The top South Korean buyers of Indonesian palm lack the world’s best sustainability commitments, and …
Chain Reaction Research (CRR) strives to provide objective insight and unbiased analysis on market trends and company and investor risk for its readers. CRR determines content based on what is considered to be of broad interest to readers and whether it can provide candid, high-level debate.
Chain Reaction Research conducts free sustainability risk analysis for financial analysts, credit analysts, commercial bankers, institutional investors, corporations, and other stakeholders. Our special focus is demonstrating that deforestation is material financial risk. We focus on tropical deforestation-related commodities including palm oil, soy, cattle, coffee, cacao, timber pulp and paper, and other products. We are funded by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) scheme managed by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), and the Moore Charitable Foundation. Chain Reaction Research statements and materials do not necessarily reflect the standpoints of the Packard Foundation, the Moore Foundation or Norad.
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