Federal Prosecution Service backs environmental pact while antitrust regulator investigates alleged cartel among traders.
Brazil’s Federal Prosecution Service (MPF) said it has found no evidence so far of collusion in the Soy Moratorium, a private agreement among grain traders that bans purchases of soybeans grown on land deforested in the Amazon after 2008, even if cleared legally.
On Monday (18), the antitrust watchdog CADE suspended the pact through a precautionary ruling, halting the work of the Soy Working Group (GTS), which oversees its implementation.
“The institutional position of the MPF is that, up to this point, there are not enough elements to say there was collusion. On the other hand, there is sufficient evidence to say the [Moratorium] is a significant experiment in controlling deforestation,”
Ubiratan Cazetta, the federal prosecutor assigned to CADE, told Valor.
The MPF has not yet issued an official opinion on the antitrust case, which could take around 10 days. Mr. Cazetta said that prosecutors will review the evidence as parties present their arguments—including farmers and industry—to determine whether any “competition concerns” exist.
CADE’s Tribunal will now decide whether to uphold the suspension, once a rapporteur is appointed. The case has been under confidential review since August 2024.
“So far, there are no signs of a competition problem, but we will wait for the investigation to unfold. If there is, we’ll see what remedies could apply—but, as of now, there are no such indications,”
Mr. Cazetta added.
From an “exclusively environmental” perspective, the MPF considers the Soy Moratorium effective over nearly two decades, citing “beneficial environmental impacts.” According to prosecutors, soybean acreage in the Amazon expanded without “significant impact,” since growth occurred on land cleared before July 2008, often previously used for cattle ranching.
Even before CADE’s suspension, the MPF had formally defended maintaining the pact, arguing it aligns with international commitments such as the Paris Agreement. The agency stressed that it meets the importers’ demand that agricultural products not come from recently deforested areas.
In its technical note, the MPF said:
“Under the Paris Agreement, Brazil committed to ending illegal deforestation in the Amazon and reforesting 12 million hectares. That goal would be virtually impossible without the advances promoted by the Soy Moratorium.”
CADE’s technical staff, however, argued on Monday that there are “robust indications” the exporters participating in the Moratorium operate as a “buyers’ cartel,” supported by the Brazilian Association of Vegetable Oil Industries (ABIOVE) and the National Association of Cereal Exporters (ANEC). An administrative inquiry was opened against 30 exporters, which have 30 days as of September 18 to present their defense.
The case began with a petition from the Agriculture Committee of Brazil’s Lower House, backed by the Soy and Corn Producers Association of Mato Grosso (APROSOJA-MT). The Brazilian Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock (CNA) also filed a complaint in February. CADE’s technical team said the precautionary ruling was necessary to avoid “irreparable or hard-to-repair harm.”
Source: Valor International
