Ahead of the 2021 Senedd elections, a campaign led by Size of Wales, and supported by RSPB Cymru calls on political parties to commit to policies that would make Wales the world’s first deforestation free nation.

Currently, Wales’ ecological footprint is five times bigger than the size of the nation itself. Much of this is caused by the consumption of everyday commodities including beef, soy (found in animal feeds for animals reared for meat, eggs and dairy), palm oil (found in nearly half of packaged products in our supermarkets including biscuits and shampoo), cacao (used to make chocolate), and coffee.

The campaign has published a report “Making Wales a Deforestation Free Nation” that outlines how policymakers, businesses, and public institutions can work together to achieve this goal.

The report proposes 10 key recommendations that include incentivising and supporting businesses via Welsh Government’s Economic Contract to make sure their supply chains are deforestation free, reviews of Welsh Government and local government pension fund investments, changes to farming and food practices, and creating a ‘deforestation free’ label for products made in Wales.

To learn more about the campaign and watch a video of the campaign’s launch event, visit the Size of Wales Website