Blog: Forests

Rich in biodiversity and home to rare species such as jaguars, which are on the brink of extinction in the region, these forests are being destroyed at one of the fastest rates in the world.

The rate of this destruction has accelerated since 1996 when Monsanto introduced genetically engineered soya beans into Argentina. Since then, the country has extended its agricultural frontiers to grow genetically engineered soya for export as animal feed particularly to the European Union and China, at the expense of its threatened forests, wildlife and the home and livelihoods of many forest dwelling people, including indigenous people.

When the Markets Initiative started, Canada's publishing houses were largely sourcing virgin wood pulp from Canadian forests, with a high percentage from ancient forests. No publishers were consistently printing on recycled paper, no printers stocked ancient forest friendly (recycled/FSC certified) papers, and no such paper was being produced as a standard book sheet.

UK book publisher MQ Publications, have adopted an 'ancient forest friendly' procurement policy that commits the company to move all its books onto recycled and/or Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper over the next three years. This follows our collaboration with them as part of the Greenpeace Book Campaign.

The Ancient Forests is a short film commissioned by Greenpeace, directed by Julien Temple and narrated by Ewan McGregor and Sir David Attenborough. In 2003 it appeared in selected cinemas and was also on general release accompanying 'About a Boy'.