Soy Cultivation: Rainforest Deforestation for Vegan Food?

“Your tofu is the cause of the deforestation of the rainforest.”  Maybe you’ve heard this sentence before and wondered if you should give up your tofu sausage in the future?

Fact is: The environmental impact of soy cultivation is often criticized. At the same time, demand for soy is growing worldwide.

How does soy cultivation affect the environment and what influence does your diet have? Find the answers in this article!

Did you know …

… that 70 % of the soy produced worldwide is used for feed production (Deutscher Verband Tiernahrung e. V., 2016)?

The Soy Plant

The soybean plant, known to botanists as Glycine max, is a member of the legume family. It originated in China, where it was first cultivated several thousand years ago. The soybean plant is a subtropical annual plant. It is characterized by the fine and dense hairiness of its stems, leaves and thin stems, which are 80–100 m high and form taproots up to one and a half meters long. The flowers are self-pollinating and therefore independent of pollinators such as bees. 20–80 % of the flowers produce pods, each containing 1–6 seeds. When the pods mature in the fall, the leaves turn brown, dry up, and can be harvested (Hahn and Miedaner, 2013).

However, there is no such thing as a single soybean, as different varieties exist. They differ mainly in their protein content, cultivation requirements, and resistance to cold and pests. Among experts, they are divided into groups according to their ripening time. The less favorable the site, the earlier the beans need to ripen.

The plants need certain nodule bacteria on the stems for nitrogen supply. Since these are not present in the soil in Europe, it is necessary to inoculate the seeds with these microorganisms immediately before sowing.

Soy Cultivation

Site

Since the soybean plant grows best at temperatures of 24–34°C and prefers a warm, humid climate, Germany is actually not well suited for growing soybeans. However, new varieties are constantly being bred with modified characteristics that make them suitable for cultivation under other conditions. There are some projects to promote soybean cultivation in more areas.

It is important that sowing takes place at soil temperatures above 8–10°C, as this is the only way to ensure rapid growth, which is necessary for optimal plant development. The plant’s nutrient and water requirements vary depending on the stage of growth. Since the plant is sensitive to weeds, the site must be as free of them as possible. Mechanical and chemical weed control is therefore an important part of cultivation (sojafoerderring.de).

Figures on Soybean Production

While 260 million tons of soybeans were produced worldwide in 2009/10, it was already 371 million tons in 2022/23, and according to FAO-AMIS forecasts, it will be more than 400 million tons in 2023/24 (FAO-AMIS, 2023). As you can see, the demand and supply of soy are growing.

The main producers are the USA, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Canada. In the EU, 2.5 million tons of soybeans were grown in 2016, from which about 2 million tons of soybean meal were produced, mainly in Italy, France and Romania.

Demand is also increasing in Germany: in 2018, the area under cultivation was 23,900 ha (more than half of which is in Bavaria), which is 15 % more than in the previous year, and 62,000 tons of soybeans were produced (OVID, 2018a). Since the soybeans grown in Germany would yield about 0.03 million t of soybean meal, but consumption was 4.2 million t, German soybean meal could cover only 1 % of the total protein feed demand (OVID, 2018b). Therefore, most of the soy used in Germany is imported from North and South America. While local farmers benefit to some extent, most still live below the poverty line. Most of the tax revenue goes to the government, and because soy production displaces other grains and livestock, food security is compromised (Benbrook, 2005).

Genetic Engeneering

When discussing soy, it usually does not take long before the topic of genetic engineering comes up. Worldwide, about 82 % of the soy grown is GMO (genetically modified organism) soy (Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forests and Fisheries, 2016). In the U.S., Brazil and Argentina, GMO soy accounts for about 90–100 % of cultivated area. In contrast, GMO soy is not allowed in the EU. If a food contains more than 0.9 % of genetically modified ingredients, it must be labeled according to European law (BMEL, 2013). However, in Germany, no genetic engineering is allowed in the production of organic food.

A GMO is defined as “a plant, animal or microbe in which one or more changes have been made to the genome, typically using high-tech genetic engineering, in an attempt to alter the characteristics of an organism” (National Human Genome Research Institute). The process itself is therefore something “unnatural”, but the result is not: for thousands of years, farmers have deliberately crossed different plant varieties with certain traits to obtain a new variety with the best traits. The difference is that genetic engineering allows this crossing to take place in a more targeted and efficient way.

Among other things, this technology is used to make plants resistant to herbicides, thereby simplifying cultivation, reducing the use of pesticides, increasing and securing crop yields, enriching plants with nutrients to support nutrient supply, especially in developing countries, and, for example, extending shelf life and reducing food waste (Klümper and Qaim, 2014; Zhang et al., 2016).

Criticisms include the potential emergence of antibiotic resistance and new pests, resulting in increased pesticide use, a feared decline in biodiversity, and the potential allergic reaction of pecan-allergic individuals to soy due to the incorporation of a protein from the nut, and the dependence of farmers on large corporations (Zhang et al., 2016; Benbrook, 2005; Center for Soybean Cultivation, 2019). However, there is no scientific evidence of adverse effects on human or animal health (SOT, 2017).

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Environmental Impact of Soy Cultivation

A major problem with the high demand for soy is the large amount of land required to grow it. This is because the amount of land required necessitates the destruction of numerous forests, grasslands, and savannas, especially in South America, thus displacing the cultivation of other crops (WWF, 2014). Between 1998 and 2004, an average of 315 hectares of forest disappeared each year in Argentina (Benbrook, 2005). It is worth noting that the production of tofu and soy milk requires only a fraction of the land needed to grow soy animal feed for meat and dairy production (Poore and Nemecek, 2018).

Deforestation in South America not only destroys the habitat of many animal and plant species, but also leads to increased greenhouse gas emissions, further driving climate change. In addition, monoculture agriculture can lead to soil degradation and water pollution. It can also foster land use conflicts between people living in the cultivation area (WWF, 2014).

As you can see, large-scale soybean cultivation, which is necessary to meet global demand, especially for animal feed, has some environmental drawbacks. However, there are a number of initiatives to promote sustainable soy cultivation, but only about 2 % of global soy production is currently certified as sustainable (OVID, 2018b). FEFAC (European Feed Manufacturers’ Federation/European Association of Soybean Producers) promotes sustainable soy bean cultivation with their guidelines. These establish standards for social and ecological responsibility in soy production. Compliance is verified by independent experts from the International Trade Center (ITC) (FEFAC, 2015). 17 relevant soy certification schemes for animal feed meet the FEFAC guidelines. These include the ProTerra standard or ISCC PLUS. Perhaps you have heard of them (OVID, 2018b).

Use of Soy

Of the soybean plant its whole beans, as well as its meal and oil are used. In 2011, the world produced about 262 million tons of soybeans, 177 million tons of soybean meal and 42 million tons of oil. The latter is used not only in edible oils, but also in cosmetics and soaps, as well as in gasoline. As mentioned above, contrary to what one might expect, most of the soy grown is not used directly for food production: A staggering 70 % of the soy harvest goes into animal feed production, primarily for meat and dairy production (Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forests and Fisheries, 2016). The main reason for its use as animal feed is the plant’s high protein content. To illustrate, 1 kg of chicken requires about 600 g to over 1 kg of soy, depending on the source (The Dutch Soy Coalition, 2014; Kroes and Kuepper, 2015).

Only 13 % of soy cultivated is used directly for human consumption (Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forests and Fisheries, 2016). But even here, the production of tofu and the like is only part of the story. The food industry uses soy primarily as an emulsifier, stabilizer, humectant and binder in the form of lecithin, for example in sauces, chocolate, ice cream or baked goods. If you look at the ingredient lists of processed foods, you will be amazed at how many foods contain soy (lecithin).

In addition, of course, the soybean is consumed directly, processed into tofu, tempeh, soy sauce and miso, or used in foods such as margarine and cooking oil. There are also soy-based infant formulas, soy flour and protein isolates and concentrates (WWF, 2014). Vegan substitutes are also often soy-based. Soy is particularly used in meat and cheese alternatives, as well as in many other dairy substitutes.

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Cutltivate Your Own Soy

You can also grow your own soy. This is best done if you have a small field. However, the cultivation is relatively complex, and the yield is unlikely to be enough for self-sufficiency. But if you enjoy gardening, it might be an exciting experiment to watch the plants grow and harvest your own soybeans.

Sow in the second half of April to early May when soil temperatures are above 8–10 °C. A sunny to partial shade location is best. Even if pre-inoculated seeds are used, they should still be inoculated with the nodule bacteria mentioned above. The soil should be a calcareous, sandy loam that is slightly warmed. Before seeding, the field must be fertilized with a nitrogen-free fertilizer. Then dig a 3–4 cm deep furrow in the soil and place a soybean every 2 cm, 2–5 cm deep depending on the soil, and cover with soil.

During the growing season, loosen the soil and remove weeds. If it does not rain, water the plants. By the end of September, the beans should be ripe, and you can either pull the bushes up by the roots or cut them close to the ground. Then spread them out in a dry, shady place or hang them in bunches to ripen. When ripened, you can gin them or thresh them, lay them on cloths, dry them, and pack them. Have fun!

Conclusion

Soybean production in other EU countries is rightly criticized for being rather unsustainable. In particular, the large amount of land required has an impact on soils, biodiversity and the climate. In addition, there are sometimes poor working conditions for farmers, conflicts over land use, and the supply for the local population is impaired. At the moment, Western countries are contributing to these problems, in particular because the high demand for protein-rich feed for the meat and dairy industries requires large quantities of imports.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to use the positive properties of the bean, such as the high protein content and other health-promoting substances, directly for human consumption? By reducing the consumption of products of animal origin, the demand for soy could be drastically reduced, leading to fewer imports. This would not only reduce the negative impacts of cultivation, but also conserve other resources used to produce foods of animal origin.

By eating a plant-based diet and buying soy products made with soy from local cultivation, you are helping to reduce the negative impacts of large-scale soy farming on the environment, people and animals. So you can enjoy your tofu schnitzel without built.