From Mastodon

• Australian beef producers are not responsible for deforestation, according to advice from the federal Agriculture Department to Minister Murray Watt.
• However, Queensland government data shows that 418,656 hectares of woody vegetation were cleared in the state in 2019-20.
• An analysis by the Wilderness Society found that beef production was linked to 66% of land clearing in Queensland in 2019-20, where threatened species were known or likely to live.
• Australia is considered one of the world’s deforestation hotspots and is committed to halting forest loss by 2030.
• Trade negotiations with the European Union regarding increased access for Australian farm exports are complicated by concerns about deforestation.