Brazil’s new environment minister has blamed cattle for the recent increase in deforestation of the Amazon.

Brazil’s previous environment minister, Marina Silva, blamed the increasing deforestation of the Amazon on Brazilian cattle ranchers and farmers and now the new minister, Carlos Minc, has announced that he also believes this to be the case - so much so that he has introduced new measures in an attempt to halt the destruction.

As the price of meat and grain increases, so does the illegal logging of the Amazon to make way for cattle. To combat this, Minc has warned that the government will impound cattle caught grazing on illegally cleared pastures with an operation dubbed “Rogue Bull.”

Forest is not only cleared for cattle grazing but also to make way for soy planatations. Around 90% of the world’s soy is fed to animals and it is now widely recognised that feeding the 73 million cows of the Amazon, and all the others animals raised for meat in the world, is the biggest driver of deforestation. On top of this, 75% of Brazil’s greenhouse gas emissions are caused by burning to clear new or overgrown pasture for cattle. The contribution to climate change this creates is further exasperated by the the methane that the cows produce.

Forests are crucial to the health of the planet. They clean the air, produce rainfall and absorb carbon dioxide. Without forests we all suffer - the animals and people who live there and the rest of us who depend on the environmental benefits they give us.

We know the meat industry is the leading cause of deforestation, therefore the solution is simple. Go vegan.