Monsanto

Monsanto is a member of CI's Business & Sustainability Council – a community of companies committed to leveraging their business experience and resources to protect nature for the benefit of humanity – and the Asia-Pacific Business & Sustainability Council, for business leaders committed to implementing and promoting social, economic and environmental sustainability in the Asia-Pacific region.

CI and Monsanto established a partnership in 2008 because both organizations believe that by working together, they will encourage positive changes for biodiversity and natural habitats by:

• Influencing the implementation of best practices along the supply chain of Monsanto, a leading agribusiness company which is directly in contact with farmers in the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado of Brazil and
• Implementing concrete conservation actions in 2 biodiversity corridors in the Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes.

Objective: The general objective of the partnership is conserve biodiversity in two biodiversity corridors, one in the Atlantic Forest (Northeast Corridor) and other in Cerrado (Jalapão/Western Bahia Corridor).

The project has three specific objectives:

• Preventing illegal deforestation; 
• Preventing the local extinction of species; 
• Encouraging compliance with legislation in the agriculture and livestock supply chain.

The project also includes CI’s participation as a member to Monsanto-Brazil’s internal Sustainability Council, which is a forum to review, set and improve environmental practices and sustainability policies and projects within the organization and its supply chain. This council is also a mechanism for Monsanto to bring in outside expertise necessary to help shape its sustainability efforts and to engage in key alliances and initiatives of global importance in the environmental and sustainability arenas, including international conventions such as the CDB.


Why Work in the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado?

These regions were chosen because they are considered biodiversity hotspots, that is, they are among the 34 areas identified by CI as the biologically richest and most threatened in the world, having already lost at least 75 percent of their original vegetation. They are, therefore, priority areas for conservation actions that also coincide with regions where Monsanto operates, and where agribusiness has a significant impact on the environment.

Investment

The total value of the project is US$ 13 million, to be invested over five years. CI and Monsanto invest equally in this project.

Learn more about Monsanto Company by visiting www.monsanto.com.