Towards nature-friendly consumption Biodiversity impacts and policy options for shrimp, soy, and palm oil
With a material footprint of 14 tonnes per capita, consumption in the European Union (EU) significantly contributes to global biodiversity loss, primarily through land-use change and habitat degradation. Food systems are playing a major role in driving these impacts. This study highlights the biodiversity impacts of EU demand for shrimp, soy, and palm oil on ecosystems in the Global South and formulates concrete policy recommendations to promote nature‑friendly consumption and trade.
Combining quantitative assessments of biodiversity impacts with qualitative policy analysis, the study demonstrates: effective policies must build on integrated approaches that jointly address biodiversity and climate objectives, recognising their close interdependence. Additionally, sufficiency-oriented strategies, such as reducing demand for high-impact products, emerge as a key lesson for shaping sustainable consumption within planetary boundaries.
The three case studies illustrate how EU consumption patterns drive biodiversity loss across global commodity chains: shrimp aquaculture contributes significantly to the deforestation of mangrove forests and causes pollution that degrade surrounding ecosystems. Soy cultivation, mainly as feed crops for animal products, leads to land conversion in key biomes such as the Cerrado and the Pampas, and palm oil expansion causes peatland and rainforest degradation.
The authors suggest for policymakers to remove harmful subsidies and reform agricultural, fiscal, and trade policies – ranging from Common Agricultural Policy reform and VAT adjustment to strengthened sustainability clauses in free trade agreements and mandatory biodiversity criteria in public procurement.
The study shows that biodiversity loss is not an inevitable consequence of consumption but the result of political and economic decisions. It demonstrates that with coordinated, equity‑focused policies combining regulatory, fiscal, market‑based, voluntary, and trade instruments, the EU can meaningfully reduce its global biodiversity footprint – supporting more sustainable production, fairer trade relations, and healthier, plant‑forward diets within European food systems.
In addition to the brochure, three fact sheets summarize the impact of European consumption of shrimp, soy, and palm oil on biodiversity worldwide:
- Köppen, S.; Giest F. (2025): Europe's growing appetite for shrimp. Peeling back the layers of a biodiversity crisis. German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Bonn. Download (0,54 MB)
- Köppen S.; Giest F. (2025): Palm oil and the EU. How everyday products trigger tropical peatland loss. German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Bonn. Download (0,45 MB)
- Köppen S.; Giest F. (2025): The hidden costs of soy. How EU soy consumption threatens South American biodiversity. German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), Bonn. Download (0,47 MB)
