Brazil's Amazon Soy Pact Suspended Amid Antitrust Probe

On August 19, 2025, Brazil's antitrust regulator, CADE, ordered the suspension of the country's "soy moratorium" - a private agreement enforced by global grain traders to protect the Amazon rainforest from soy-driven deforestation. The moratorium, in place for the past 19 years, had long been hailed as one of the most successful initiatives to safeguard the Amazon.

However, CADE's General Superintendent, Alexandre Barreto de Souza, concluded that the moratorium represented a potential breach of Brazilian competition law. He ordered firms to suspend the pact or face fines, after a preliminary investigation prompted by a request from Brazil's lower house agriculture committee, which is backed by farmers opposed to the moratorium.

Brazilian soy farmers are celebrating the suspension as a historic victory. Mauricio Buffon, president of the farm lobby Aprosoja, believes there will not be a significant drop in soy trade despite the pact's termination. Nevertheless, soy traders are now in a bind, as they plan to appeal the decision at CADE's tribunal.

If the investigation finds the moratorium to be an "anti-competitive agreement," the trade groups involved could face fines of up to 2 billion reais (around $365 million). Individual traders could also be penalized up to 20% of their company's gross revenue from the previous fiscal year.