Beyond zero deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon: Progress and remaining challenges to sustainable cattle intensification

Key messages

  • A governance approach, combining public policy and private initiatives was effective in slowing down deforestation, but was unable to support a transition to more sustainable production systems.
  • New technical intensification models must be identified for low-productivity systems in degraded lands, adapted to the biophysical and sociotechnical conditions of the Amazonian landscapes.
  • Multiple constraints inhibit progress toward sustainable intensification of cattle ranching, and reversing them requires that all such constraints be addressed in a coordinated way.
  • Designing options that work for all stakeholders, and monitoring and verifying progress of territories toward sustainability is essential to support current public policies and private initiatives.

Resilient Landscapes is powered by CIFOR-ICRAF. Our mission is to connect private and public actors in co-beneficial landscapes; provide evidence-based business cases for nature-based solutions and green economy investments; leverage and de-risk performance-driven investments with combined financial, social and environmental returns.

Learn more about Resilient Landscapes Luxembourg

2026 All rights reserved    Privacy notice