Sustainable Land-Use, Agriculture, and Forests

Sustainable Land-Use, Agriculture, and Forests

Working to ensure land is legally and well managed, and that trade of goods is transparent, legal and sustainable.

Our work in this sector

The responsible management of natural resources for the production of food, fuel and goods is vital to the stability of the green economy and of the climate. The global population puts enormous pressure on these vital natural resources, and BVRio’s market-based solutions ensure that land is legally and well managed, and that trade of these goods is transparent, legal and sustainable.

Since 2011 BVRio has been developing products and services in support of the responsible timber industry within Brazil, home of the world’s largest and most vulnerable forest, and across other developing countries. As land-use and agriculture has changed, BVRio has evolved the mechanisms to support sustainable timber trade, and is now applying them to the farming of crops such as soy, cocoa and rice.

BVRio operates an online negotiations platform and WoodsApp for timber, integrated with a Due Diligence and Risk Assessment system for Brazilian timber, and provides guidance for legal timber trading in the Republic of Congo, Peru, Cameroon or Ghana.

BVRio is a member of the Tropical Forest Alliance, is in a Key Account Partnership with the Forest Stewardship Council, and has established partnerships in Indonesia and China.

Products and Services

We seek to create market mechanisms to increase economic efficiency and address market failures, and to support the use of market-based approaches to create liquidity to the mechanisms created.

SojaCheck - deforestation and conversion risk tool

A production map of soy grown in the Brazilian Cerrado region showing deforestation and conversion risk factors.

Timber Due Diligence System

BVRio's Due Diligence and Risk Assessment System conducts a risk analysis of wood products along the supply chain. Available for users to analyse Brazilian timber transport authorisations or to check FSC® and PEFC licenses from all over the world.

Responsible Timber Exchange

Founded in 2016, this free online trading platform is used to promote the use of tropical wood products from legal sources.

Responsible Commodities Facility

The Responsible Commodities Facility (RCF) is an initiative to promote the production and trading of responsible soy and corn in Brazil, by creating a financially sustainable vehicle to provide incentives to farmers and help meet the growing international demand for zero-deforestation supply chains.

Timber Due Diligence Guides

Working with local governments, we produced a series of Practical Guides to Conducting Due Diligence of Tropical Timber products in Brazil, Peru, Ghana, Cameroon and Republic of Congo.

Forest Code Monitoring Portal

In partnership with the Brazilian Forest Code Observatory (OCF), we developed the Forest Code Portal to inform, reflect, promote transparency and contribute to monitoring the implementation of the Brazilian Forest Code.

Impact

Our vision is to deliver positive impacts for the economy, environment and people through the work that we do.

Legal Timber

92m m3 timber offered to date in the Responsible Timber Exchange

Conservation

5 million ha registered on the Legal Reserve Credits platform in Brazil

Carbon Emissions

2 Gt CO2 GHG emission reduction potential of these initiatives

Due Diligence

Over 20,000 reports created using our Brazilian Due Diligence and Risk Assessment tool

Current Initiatives

The Tropical Forests Mechanism (TFM) Concept Note

The Tropical Forests Mechanism (TFM) is aimed at supporting nature finance at scale to guarantee the maintenance and enhancement of tropical forests worldwide. The mechanism is expected to complement the Brazilian government’s Tropical Forests Forever Fund (TFFF), announced at COP28, to secure funding to protect rainforests in the Amazon region, Congo Basin, and Southeast Asia.

The TFM is an initiative of Amazon 2030, with the support of BVRio and Igarapé Institute.

SojaCheck – Brazilian soy deforestation risk assessment map and tool

A free and simple to use map-based tool designed to meet the complex due diligence requirements of soy importation from Brazil. The system checks soy farms in the Cerrado region of Brazil to assess if soy has been produced without deforestation or conversion of native vegetation, as well as assessing Brazilian Forest Code related indicators and other compliance checks, enabling informed decision making related to commodity sourcing and supply chains.

Responsible Commodities Facility – Environmental Committee Coordination

BVRio is the coordinating organisation of the independent Environmental Committee of the Responsible Commodities Facility (RCF) made up of the biggest names in global conservation efforts. The committee will review and provide input into the environmental management of the first US$11million pilot programme offering financial incentives for farmers in Brazil who commit to deforestation- and conversion-free (DCF) soy cultivation.

Planaflor

The national sustainable development plan for Brazil promoting environmental, economic and social assets from the effective implementation of the Brazilian Forest Code.

SIMFlor

Recognising the importance of the conservation and restoration obligations of the Forest Code, BVRio and partners created SIMFlor – a programme to provide financial support to landowners to conserve existing native vegetation in their land.

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Cooperation with the Forest Code Observatory

Development of tools and actions for knowledge transfer among audiences that play crucial roles in implementing Law No. 12,651/12, better known as the Brazilian Forest Code.

Previous initiatives in this area

Since 2012 BVRio has developed market mechanisms, products and initiatives in this area, contributed to public policy and been a advocate and delivery partner to others.