by Helen Burley
The Portal do Codigo Florestal provides access to a number of tools, including a scorecard developed using Global Canopy Programme’s Forest 500 data to monitor the performance of companies on their forest policies.
Using the Forest 500 methodology, this scorecard currently ranks 76 retailers according to their forest policy, commodity specific policies (timber, cattle and soy), operations and reporting, and level of transparency.
Only one company, Marks and Spencer, attained the highest overall score of 5/5 for their policies on cattle, soy and timber.
Roberta Del Giudice, Executive Secretary of the Observatory of the Brazilian Forest Code, explained the portal had been developed to promote awareness of the rules that make up the Forest Code, and to improve transparency around compliance of agricultural producers with the Code.
She added: “It can be difficult to know whether or not companies are complying with the Code. We need transparency to drive implementation of environmental standards. If agricultural producers and companies do not comply with the Forest Code, that affects all of us.”
The Portal is an initial step in the search for greater transparency in awareness of implementation of the Code, she said.
Tom Bregman, Senior Sustainable Finance Associate at Global Canopy Programme added: “The new portal is a welcome step forward in improving transparency around soft commodity production in Brazil. It complements the work done by Forest 500 to rank companies according to their commitments, and encourage policies to reduce deforestation in countries such as Brazil.”
