Wreck the forests, wreck the climate

Over half the world's plants and animals live in and around forests including three-quarters of all birds, so they’re important for biodiversity. Forests also regulate rainfall patterns, water and soil quality and can prevent flooding. But one of their most vital roles is in regulating climate by absorbing and storing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere.



When forests are burned they release CO2 and other greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The more forest that gets destroyed (deforestation), the fewer trees there are to keep storing up the carbon. An area of forest the size of London is lost every week and this will impact us all.



The food we eat in the UK every day is destroying forests because they’re being cleared to graze cattle, produce unsustainable palm oil or soya. For example here in the UK much of the soya we import is used for animal feed. So the link between food and deforestation is ‘hidden’, even in our milk, cheese, eggs and butter.



We’re campaigning for the UK government to ban the import of food products and goods that directly or indirectly cause deforestation. We can all play our part by demanding action, spreading the word, buying products that use sustainable palm oil, and cutting down on foods which are land intensive to produce, such as meat and dairy.



There’s no way we can fight the climate crisis if we don’t stop deforestation. We need to save our forests before it’s too late.