Friends of the Earth files OECD Complaint against BlackRock for Investments in Agribusiness Companies Causing Environmental, Human Rights Violations

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Friends of the Earth files OECD Complaint against BlackRock for Investments in Agribusiness Companies Causing Environmental, Human Rights Violations

November 20, 2024

WASHINGTON/BRAZIL- Today, Friends of the Earth U.S. and the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB) submitted an OECD complaintagainst BlackRock for directly contributing to environmental and human rights abuses around the world through its investments in agribusiness. BlackRock has increased its investments in companies destroying the world's forests - driving biodiversity loss and unleashing an epidemic of violence against Human Rights Defenders - despite knowing the material risks posed by agribusiness operations and specific violations by investee companies.

The complaint was filed under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterpriseswith the National Contact Point at the U.S. State Department. The Guidelines are recommendations from governments to private companies on responsible business conduct and serve as an important framework for corporate accountability in the absence of binding regulations in national and international law.

"We hope this complaint prompts BlackRock to fulfill its obligations under international frameworks and steer investment away from agribusinesses driving climate chaos and gross human rights abuses," said Gaurav Madan, Senior Forest and Land Rights Campaigner at Friends of the Earth U.S. "Around the world, agribusiness companies are stealing communities' lands, razing the world's last standing forests, and trampling Indigenous Peoples' rights. This complaint provides a pathway for BlackRock to develop the necessary practices to stop bankrolling ecological destruction and an epidemic of violence against communities. Ultimately, the repeated failures of voluntary corporate initiatives indicate that increased regulation is urgently needed for the agribusiness sector - and the financial system enabling it."

For years, elected officials, Indigenous Peoples, and Human Rights Defendershave engaged BlackRock to address deforestation, biodiversity loss, land grabbing, human rights abuses, and violations of Indigenous Peoples' rights linked to its investments. Despite these efforts, BlackRock has sustained - and in many cases - increased investmentin destructive agribusiness companies.

Friends of the Earth examined publicly available data on BlackRock's shareholdings between January 2019 and June 2024 in 20 agribusiness companies with documented evidence of environmental and human rights abuses, operating in the palm oil, pulp/paper, soy, cattle, timber, and biomass sectors. The analysis found that BlackRock has more than $5 billion invested in these 20 companies, increased its investments by $519 million since 2019, and is a top 10 shareholder in each company. Additionally, a recent Forests & Finance reportfound that BlackRock is the largest investor in forest-risk companies in South America and Central and West Africa, and the sixth largest investor in forest-risk companies in Southeast Asia. In total, BlackRock has increased its investments in forest-risk companies globally by 61% since 2018.

"For years Indigenous Peoples have challenged BlackRock to stop financing companies that are illegally setting fire to the Amazon and violating communities' land rights. But BlackRock has failed to prevent its investments from endangering entire peoples' way of life," said Dinamam Tuxá, Executive Coordinator of the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil (APIB)."Today, we are seeing the violent impacts of BlackRock's business model as agribusiness companies decimate globally significant biomes from the Brazilian Cerrado to the forests of Borneo. For the sake of our future, we call on BlackRock to stop making excuses and stop funding companies driving deforestation, biodiversity loss, and violence against our communities."

The filing continues a trend of recent complaints seeking to hold financial institutions accountable for contributing to human rights and environmental violations, including through index funds. In October, Client Earth filed a complaint on BlackRock with French financial regulators for greenwashingso-called "sustainable" funds through investments in fossil fuel companies.

The complaint comes at a time when global deforestation is on the rise and global leaders and advocates convene for the U.N. Climate COP29 in Azerbaijan. An October 2024 report found that global deforestation increased in 2023, largely due to agribusiness operations, and is now higher than when 140 countries promised to halt deforestation three years ago. Agribusiness is a primary driver of climate and biodiversity collapse and an ongoing epidemic of violence against Human Rights Defenders.

Communications contact: Brittany Miller, [email protected], (202) 222-0746

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