In the last seven years, almost three million hectares of the Colombian Amazon have been destroyed, a phenomenon that threatens not only the environment, but also biodiversity and the indigenous communities that depend on these ecosystems.
According to studies by the Foundation for Conservation and Sustainable Development, More than six million new heads of cattle have entered the country, 30% to the Amazon biome. In fact, according to Julia Miranda, representative to the Chamber and former director of National Natural Parks, around 1,200,000 cattle have entered, consolidating the livestock herd in the areas near Chiribiquete and the Nukak Maku reservation.
Faced with this alarming reality, The Colombian Congress has the opportunity to make history and protect one of the world’s most important natural treasures through the meat traceability or “deforestation-free livestock” bill.
This bill strengthens inter-institutional management between environment and agriculture to be able to generate special livestock control strategies in active deforestation centers. According to Miranda, This promotes interoperability between systems associated with animal traceabilitythe cadastre and property registration systems, and the system that Ideam has consolidated to monitor deforestation.
Juan Carlos Lozada, representative to the Chamber for the Liberal Party and author of the project, assured that if these three information systems became interoperable, they would be able to trace a path from when the beef is born until it reaches the plates. “This would ensure that the meat they are consuming does not come from deforestation areas,” he warned.
Support for this initiative has transcended borders. The actor, director and environmental activist Leonardo DiCaprio expressed his support for the project, highlighting the importance of this measure for the protection of Colombian biodiversity.
“As one of the most biodiverse countries on Earth, the Colombian Congress is about to make history”said Leonardo DiCaprio this Wednesday, June 12, 2024 on his Instagram account.
DiCaprio mentioned through his Instagram account that this bill would mean “a tremendous step forward in the protection of vital places like Chiribiquete National Parka world heritage site, rich in biodiversity and home to dozens of indigenous groups, currently threatened by deforestation.”
Lozada spoke about the support received by DiCaprio: “The fact that activists of enormous international recognition like Leonardo DiCaprio publicly support us shows how exceptional this norm could be in terms of the international concert, where we are going to have to have better systems traceability to guarantee that the products consumed in different markets do not come from major environmental damage like what the Amazon has suffered in Colombia, Bolivia or Brazil,” he mentioned.
