Deforestation in Australia

Greenpeace is asking corporations operating in Australia to commit to no deforestation or destruction of other natural ecosystems in the key products they produce or sell by the end of 2025 at the latest.
In particular we are asking corporations to prioritise ensuring the beef they produce or buy does not come from cattle operations where forests and natural ecosystems have been recently destroyed (since 2020). This is because beef is the number one driver of deforestation in Australia so tackling this issue quickly will have a big positive impact for our forests.

Well-known corporations such as McDonalds, Woolworths and Coles have a big role to play here so we are asking them to step up and help protect our forests and wildlife by refusing beef produced from deforestation.

Deforestation is the destruction of natural forest, including both never-before bulldozed forest and healthy regenerating or fully regenerated forest.

Greenpeace uses the definition of deforestation set out by a globally-recognised ethical supply chain organisation called the Accountability Framework Initiative. Major global sustainability and climate initiatives such as the Science-Based Targets Initiative also use this same framework.

Importantly, our asks of the Australian government and corporations is to halt both deforestation and the destruction of other non-forest natural ecosystems. The technical term used by the Accountability Framework Initiative to cover destruction of all ecosystem types is “conversion”. So really what we are asking for is for no more conversion of natural ecosystems, including no more deforestation of forests. It’s just that deforestation is far more understood by the public so we use this term to communicate the problem!

Cattle grazing for beef production is the leading cause of deforestation in Australia as forests and bushland are bulldozed to make way for vast cow paddocks. Around 70% of deforestation in Queensland – the hotspot in Australia – is for beef.

Sheep grazing is another driver, followed by logging to make paper and wood products. Mining, infrastructure and housing development are other drivers. While the local impacts of these developments can be severe, deforestation for beef dwarves all others in terms of the area of forest destroyed annually.

Much of the deforestation occurring in Australia is of regenerating or fully regenerated forest. While a never-before bulldozed forest will always be the best of the best, these recovering forests also have important values. They are slowly bringing back wildlife, stablising soils, and drawing down carbon out of the atmosphere. Allowing the bulldozers to destroy this regeneration kills the animals that have returned and sets back the clock for a long recovery once again.

It must be stressed that many types of forests are unable to recover at all following destruction by bulldozers and replacement with agricultural or other land uses. Where forests are sometimes able to regenerate, such as some Acacia species forests in Queensland, this is no excuse to start or continue bulldozing as the cumulative impacts on wildlife and the land are immense. Restoring any forest to a pre-bulldozed state is also very difficult and can take many decades, sometimes hundreds of years.

Yes, it is possible! We know cattle can be raised in Australia without bulldozing forests and in fact, the majority of beef produced in Australia is already deforestation-free.

But a minority of landholders, mostly in Queensland and New South Wales, are conducting large-scale deforestation for beef production — the majority without any oversight due to legal blindspots in our nature laws which allow areas considered threatened species habitat to be bulldozed. 

At the moment, corporations like McDonald’s, Woolworths and Coles do not have adequate systems in place to rule out deforestation from their supply chains, meaning they are effectively hiding the deforestation in their products from consumers. This is not good enough and consumers deserve better. 

Over the past decade there has been a wave of global commitments, both from corporations and governments, to eliminate deforestation. Given the growing demand for deforestation-free beef globally, and the deforestation risk associated with sourcing beef in Australia (and especially Queensland), major purchasers must lead the way with strong deforestation-free commitments and robust implementation plans, to ensure that customers in Australia and overseas can be confident they’re not supporting the destruction of our precious wildlife and forests.

Our Aussie farmers need to be fully supported to look after the land and protect and restore forests. This includes through government funds such as Queensland’s $500 million Land Restoration Fund and by the big corporations like McDonald’s, Woolworths and Coles who can use their vast profits to work with and support farmers to the right thing and pay a fair price for sustainable products.

Really it’s the large corporations like McDonald’s, Coles and Woolworths that need to act. They purchase the majority of beef domestically and make millions of dollars in profits and they need to take action to guarantee their products are not contributing to the destruction of Australian forests and wildlife.

Currently this is hidden from consumers, who are unaware that the beef on supermarket shelves or in their Big Mac could be contributing to the deaths of millions of native animals every year. It is imperative that solutions to this crisis are supported by companies linked to, or within, the Australian beef industry who can drive change.

Australia is one of the biggest consumers of meat per capita in the world and we know that consuming less meat is vital for the planet. But this is not just about people’s individual choices — given that beef production is a major driver of deforestation in Australia, it is imperative that solutions to this crisis are supported by corporations linked to, or within, the Australian beef industry. While meat alternatives and meat-free diets can help, we can’t rely on this alone to solve the deforestation problem. We need to force big corporations to take action.

Major purchasers of Australian beef like McDonald’s, Woolworths and Coles have a critical role to play in ensuring that their supply chains are not driving the destruction of our forests and threatening our wildlife. Right now, corporations like McDonald’s are hiding this from their customers, most of whom would be shocked to know that their Big Mac is fuelling the deforestation crisis and pushing threatened species like the koala to the brink of extinction. That’s why we’re calling on McDonald’s, as well as major beef purchasers like Coles and Woolies, to lead the way and commit to eliminating deforestation from their products.

This year the Australian government will face a huge test — a once-in-a-generation reform of our national environment law, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act). Without strong laws that genuinely protect and restore nature, the destruction of wildlife and forests will continue and countless more native animals will face extinction.

Stronger legislation to safeguard our environment is a win for everyone — so Greenpeace is urging the government to introduce the ambitious reforms needed to protect nature and to ensure a safe, liveable climate for all Australians.

The reforms must address Australia’s rampant deforestation, particularly from the beef and logging industries. This will be a key test and Greenpeace and our supporters will be pushing hard to make sure this happens.

The renewable energy transition presents enormous opportunities for Australia to reduce our emissions, create the clean jobs of the future and replace fossil fuels in our economy. We must avoid the destructive practices seen with the fossil fuel industry and ensure that these projects are designed in a way that benefits local communities, are developed in partnership with Traditional Owners, and undergo the strictest environmental assessments, including ensuring no destruction of important forests. When done correctly, these project can actually provide a net positive benefit to nature — and that’s what we should be striving for.

The primary driver for Australia’s globally-significant deforestation rates, focussed heavily in Queensland, is bulldozing to make way for pasture for beef cattle. Native forest logging is another key driver, particularly in New South Wales and Tasmania. Half of Australia’s forests have been lost and the continued logging of our native forests endangers species like the Koala, Greater Glider and other threatened species. 

Professor David Lindenmayer, Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University said: “All scientific economic and social data show that native forest logging is environmentally, economically and socially bankrupt. We have to make a rapid transition to a plantation-only industry.”

Greenpeace, along with other Australian eNGOs are calling on companies involved in the Australian beef industry to: Eliminate the conversion of all natural ecosystems, including no deforestation, by 31 December 2025, for all beef value chains the company sources from directly or indirectly, with a cut-off date of 31 December 2020.

The cutoff date (2020) is the last point at which there can be any natural destruction in an area for it to be considered deforestation-free into the future.
This commitment is based on guidance from the Accountability Framework initiative (AFi). In line with their guidance, 2020 is the cutoff date meaning the destruction of natural forest or natural ecosystems after the cutoff date renders the affected area, and the commodity produced there, non-compliant with no-deforestation or no-conversion commitments.

The target date (2025) is when companies must have achieved the deforestation-free commitments set out in their policies.
This is the date by which a company (or policy setting entity) intends to have fully achieved or adhered to its commitment of fully removing deforestation from its supply chain.