In the Amazon, around 200,000 hectares of deforested area have been recovered by planting oil palm, the plant that gives rise to the most consumed vegetable oil in the world and one of the crops that best recovers degraded soil. The practice is one of the strategies to complement Brazil's goal of zero deforestation by 2030, reversing the scenario of areas that have already been deforested. In Brazil, the legislation for planting oil palm prohibits the clearing of native forest for planting. Federal Government Decree 7.172 of May 2010 established that oil palm can only be grown in the Amazon in areas that were degraded before 2007.
Based on extensive work carried out by Embrapa (the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation), more than 31 million hectares were identified as suitable for oil palm cultivation in the region. Today, around 200,000 hectares have been recovered in the region with palm cultivation, 75,000 of which are cultivated by Grupo BBF (Brasil BioFuels) in Pará and Roraima.
"Curbing illegal deforestation is fundamental, as is recovering what has already been degraded. Oil palm cultivation is an excellent option for these so-called anthropized areas, because in addition to recovering the forest soil, allowing the preservation of wild animals and capturing carbon, it also generates income and employment in these regions, a key factor in ensuring that the forest remains standing. Sustainable oil palm cultivation is synonymous with the bioeconomy," says Milton Steagall, CEO of Grupo BBF.
According to Steagall, palm oil can be used to create a bioeconomy in the electricity, chemical and biofuel sectors, as well as in agribusiness. "Our country has the potential to be a global leader in palm oil production. The sustainable development of the Amazon region is urgent. We need to find ways to keep the forest standing, but also provide jobs, income and wealth for the population," he says.
"Palm cultivation can't be mechanized, which is why it's a plant with an important social character, as it creates many jobs in remote areas. At Grupo BBF alone, around 5,000 direct jobs and another 15,000 indirect jobs are generated. I would also highlight the importance of palm oil for the production of biofuels, the generation of renewable energy and also for second generation biofuels, such as SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) and Green Diesel. It's a fantastic crop that recovers the Amazon rainforest and can boost the country's energy transition," says the CEO.
The company's sustainable palm cultivation also captures around 800,000 tons of carbon annually, of which 729,000 tons in Pará and 71,000 tons in Roraima. "We protect more than 60,000 hectares of Legal Reserve Areas (RL) and Permanent Preservation Areas (APP), which annually store around 26.6 million tons of carbon in Pará and 3.1 million tons of carbon in Roraima," says Steagall.
