Tyson rules address deforestation risk

FILE - In this Jan. 29, 2006, file photo, a car passes in front of a Tyson Foods Inc., sign at Tyson headquarters in Springdale.
FILE - In this Jan. 29, 2006, file photo, a car passes in front of a Tyson Foods Inc., sign at Tyson headquarters in Springdale.

Tyson Foods Inc. is doubling down on its effort to curb deforestation.

Earlier this year, the Springdale meat processor partnered with nonprofit Proforest and determined that about 94% of the land footprint of Tyson's suppliers had little risk of being linked to deforestation.

To address the remaining 6%, Tyson said Thursday that it developed a Forest Protection Standard, a set of supplier guidelines to protect forests and other natural ecosystems. They will affect sourcing for beef and cattle, soy, palm oil and pulp, paper and packaging.

"We are asserting our ambition to make protein more sustainable and look forward to working with our supply chain partners, customers and other stakeholders to do our part on this important issue," Dean Banks, president and chief executive, said in a statement.

Deforestation concerns arose from Tyson's recent acquisitions in Europe, Asia and Australia. Suppliers are expected to adopt the new standard by as early as next year and as late as 2030, depending on the commodity.

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