Cattle Tracing Brazil Delays Threaten Amazon’s Future

*]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-(--header-height)" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id="efeac008-206b-4fa3-b646-ddff70f91186" data-testid="conversation-turn-137" data-scroll-anchor="false" data-turn="user"> *]:pointer-events-auto scroll-mt-[calc(var(--header-height)+min(200px,max(70px,20svh)))]" dir="auto" tabindex="-1" data-turn-id="request-69886e02-1980-832b-802a-1be59adff365-0" data-testid="conversation-turn-138" data-scroll-anchor="true" data-turn="assistant"> Cattle tracing in Brazil has become a defining issue for environmental protection as deforestation pressures intensify across the Amazon rainforest . On August 23, 2020, cattle grazed on land recently burned and cleared by farmers in Novo Progresso, located in Pará , illustrating how ranching expansion continues to drive forest loss. A national cattle traceability system announced in 2023 was expected to launch in January 2026, enabling authorities to track cattle from birth and prevent animals raised on illegally deforested land from entering supply chains.

Why Cattle Traceability Matters For The Amazon Cattle ranching remains one of the leading causes of deforestation in Brazil’s Amazon region. Without a functioning traceability system, cattle raised on illegally seized or deforested land can easily be laundered into legal markets. On December 1, 2025, Pará’s animal health control agency announced that all cattle movements would require traceability starting January 2026. Just one day later, Governor Helder Barbalho postponed the program until December 31, 2030.

Governor Barbalho argued that international markets have failed to sufficiently reward Pará for its investments. This rationale overlooks how continued opacity weakens sustainable ranching efforts and undermines environmental governance at a time when global markets increasingly demand deforestation-free supply chains.

Illegal Ranching And Human Rights Abuses Human Rights Watch investigations published in October 2025 documented illegal land seizures by cattle ranchers in the Terra Nossa smallholder settlement and the Cachoeira Seca Indigenous territory. These actions violated rights related to housing, land ownership, and cultural survival. Analysis of state-issued cattle transport permits revealed that illegal ranches in these protected areas supplied cattle to operations outside restricted zones, eventually reaching slaughterhouses owned by JBS .

Ranches operating inside these territories remain illegal under Brazilian federal law. Delaying traceability allows such cattle laundering practices to persist, exposing Indigenous communities to violence and dispossession while weakening enforcement mechanisms.

Economic And Environmental Costs Of Delay In November 2024, officials in Belém emphasized that the Official Individual Traceability System of Bovines was designed to strengthen Pará’s access to export markets such as the European Union and Japan. Postponing implementation removes tools that ranchers and slaughterhouses need to monitor supply chains and avoid links to illegal deforestation or abuses against Indigenous peoples.

Weak oversight also threatens Brazil’s credibility in global climate and biodiversity commitments. Transparent cattle tracing would support sustainable agriculture, reinforce land rights protections, and reduce environmental destruction across the Amazon.