Latex tapped from tropical rubber trees is used for everything from tires, to shoes to condoms. Production of natural rubber in Southeast Asia and West Africa has been a major driver of deforestation in those regions, destroying critical wildlife habitats, and often involving corporate land grabs, forced evictions, and poverty pay for small-scale rubber farmers. We’re campaigning to break the link between rubber production and forest habitat destruction or human rights violations.
Reports
Michelin moves to keep rubber in EU Deforestation Regulation
The French tire giant, Michelin has become the first major company to back the inclusion of natural rubber in the new EU deforestation regulation, currently going through final negotiations. The tire industry is by far the biggest user of this commodity. Read more here on Michelin’s statement and Mighty’s response.
New investigation alleges deforestation and greenwashing linked to Michelin.
A major new year-and-a-half long investigation by Voxeurop into a “sustainable” rubber project by French tire giant Michelin and Indonesian conglomerate Barito Pacific has led to fresh allegations of widespread deforestation, wildlife habitat destruction, and greenwashing linked to the joint venture.
The investigation, initially sparked by Mighty Earth’s 2020 Complicit report, alleges investors in a $95 million so-called “green bond” used to finance the PT Royal Lestari Utama (RLU) project in Jambi, Sumatra, were misled and never told that Michelin’s local partner had deforested thousands of hectares of tropical rainforest and global priority wildlife habitats just prior to the launch of the flagship project in January 2015.
Learning how to ‘do’ sustainable rubber
As part of Mighty Earth’s continuing efforts to advance sustainability within the natural rubber sector, we are thrilled to be co-publishing a new practical guide for rubber industry actors, entitled “Sustainable Natural Rubber: pathways, policies and partnerships”.
New Mighty Earth Report Finds Agroforestry Drives Sustainability in Rubber Supply Chain
Rubber agroforestry has multiple benefits for smallholder farmers, biodiversity, and the environment.
Complicit: An Investigation into Deforestation at Michelin’s Royal Lestari Utama Project in Sumatra, Indonesia
“Our evidence shows thousands of hectares of wildlife-rich rainforests were industrially deforested in Jambi in the run-up to the agreement of the RLU Project in late 2014. Michelin knew about this terrible forest destruction, they didn’t do enough to stop it, and instead chose to provide green cover to the project in order to attract green bond investors that have since sunk millions of dollars into the scheme.” Click to read full report and press release.
A Bridge Too Far? Social and Environmental Concerns in Bridgestone’s Liberian Rubber Plantation and A Plan for Remediation
This report discusses labor and environmental sustainability issues at the Firestone Rubber Plantation in Liberia, which is the single largest rubber plantation on the planet. Firestone Liberia is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Bridgestone Corporation, the world’s largest tire and rubber company.
Restoration & Reparations: Reforming the world’s largest rubber company
This report documents social and environmental problems found at the Hévécam rubber plantation in southern Cameroon, which is owned by Halcyon Agri, “the world’s leading rubber franchise.”
Bad Year: Driving Deforestation
Despite having long been aware that natural rubber grown on plantations in the Greater Mekong Region has been linked to deforestation, biodiversity loss, human rights abuses, and land grabs, Goodyear has done little to mitigate these risks.
Updates
Lobby group representing Michelin, Goodyear and Continental pressures EU Commission to exclude rubber from deforestation law
July 1, 2021
A row has erupted between NGOs and the rubber industry following lobbying by the EU tyre and rubber industry association to the European Commission, pressing for natural rubber to be excluded from forthcoming new EU due diligence regulations designed to stamp out deforestation, ecosystem loss and human rights abuses in key global commodity supply chains.
Towards Accountability?
June 25, 2021
Companies like Vietnamese rubber and agribusiness giant HAGL Agrico quietly took to destroying lands and forests in Cambodia belonging to Indigenous communities, disrupting ecosystems, and desecrating sacred places in order to use the land for unsustainable mono-cropped industrial agriculture.
Mighty Earth submit $1bn ‘Green bond’ application to convert Central Park and Hyde Park into rubber plantations
June 16, 2021
Two of the world’s most famous recreational parks – Central Park in New York and Hyde Park in London – could be razed and transformed into huge new industrial rubber plantations under a proposed $1billion ‘Green bond’ application submitted today by environmental campaign group Mighty Earth.
Peugeot Must Act Against Land-Grabs in Cambodia
June 11, 2021
On June 10, 2021, Mighty Earth, Equitable Cambodia, and Inclusive Development International sent an open letter to Peugeot, a global automobile brand. Despite new leadership and a strong commitment to sustainability, Peugeot has repeatedly refused to publicly condemn land grabbing and environmental damage perpetuated and caused by a subsidiary of their business partner, Truong Hai Auto Corporation (THACO).
New Mighty Earth Report Finds Agroforestry Drives Sustainability in Rubber Supply Chain
May 18, 2021
Rubber agroforestry has multiple benefits for smallholder farmers, biodiversity, and the environment.
Mighty Earth Urges Climate Bonds Initiative to Delist $95M Michelin “Green Bond” Amid Allegations of Industrial Deforestation
March 23, 2021
A bond tied to widespread, deliberate, and undisclosed industrial deforestation should not be labeled "sustainable."
WEBINAR: Environmental and human rights impacts of natural rubber processing
February 24, 2021
Watch the Swedwatch, Source International, and Mighty Earth webinar on the environmental and human rights impacts of natural rubber processing.
The Unfashionable Truth About Unsustainable Latex Rubber
January 26, 2021
Natural rubber production has been a driver of tropical deforestation, which is a major accelerant of climate change.
Is Nothing Sacred?
January 8, 2021
Indigenous people in Muoy and Inn villages in Ratanakiri were recently heartbroken to find that rubber agribusiness HAGL had partially cleared the sacred Patu Mountain
Progress Update on Cameroon Rubber Accord – October 2020
October 22, 2020
The world's largest rubber company has taken vital and encouraging steps but has a long journey ahead to make its operations in Cameroon and worldwide fully sustainable.
European Parliament Urges the EU to Stop Deforestation
October 22, 2020
The European Parliament has adopted a legislative initiative report urging the European Commission to propose a strong law to ensure products sold in the Union are deforestation-free and don’t cause human rights abuses.
European Consumers Demand Sustainable Natural Rubber: Survey
October 14, 2020
Unsustainable natural rubber is increasingly becoming a reputational risk for consumer-facing brands
Report: Michelin Covered Up Industrial Deforestation by its Indonesian Partner in “Eco-Friendly” Rubber Venture
October 6, 2020
World's largest tire company seeking millions from investors to restore forest that its own business partner destroyed.
Can Agroforestry Provide a Lifeline for Struggling Rubber Farmers and Threatened Forests?
October 2, 2020
Agroforestry is a step closer to a sustainable transformation in the natural rubber sector.
After Vote, Mighty Earth Hails Important Progress in Rubber Industry
September 23, 2020
Strong measures will improve industry’s sustainability and accountability with successful implementation
Mighty Earth Sends Strong Message to Car Companies Ahead of Crucial Rubber Industry Vote
September 16, 2020
As members prepare to vote on several key resolutions at the annual General Assembly of the Global Platform on Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR), Mighty Earth has urged car companies to reaffirm their commitments to a sustainable rubber industry.
European Tire & Rubber Manufacturers Plan to Put More Vehicles on the Roads in Response to Covid-19
May 6, 2020
Proposal for an EU-funded vehicle renewal scheme would likely increase car ownership and could pose serious public health risks
Report: Bridgestone Connected to Ongoing Labor and Environmental Concerns on its Liberia Rubber Plantation
February 10, 2020
New investigation documents serious ongoing issues at the planet’s largest rubber plantation
Stretching the possibilities for a sustainable rubber industry in 2020
January 16, 2020
We believe all these things and more are achievable in 2020, and will continue to try to stretch the possibilities for transforming the natural rubber industry this year.
Mighty Earth’s Etelle Higonnet Named to France’s National Order of Merit
December 17, 2019
French President Emmanuel Macron has named Mighty Earth's Etelle Higonnet a Chevalier of France’s Ordre national du Mérite
Multi-Stakeholder Workshop Lays Groundwork for Growth of Sustainable Rubber
November 6, 2019
Mighty Earth and our allies hosted a workshop in Thailand which brought together 100 rubber farmers, traders, processors, NGOs, government representatives, and consumer brands that use rubber—like Goodyear tires and Converse shoes—to discuss one thing: sustainable natural rubber.
Deforestation Continues Because Companies Aren’t Trying
September 12, 2019
Nobody doing business with Cargill and JBS can credibly say they are concerned about deforestation
Looking at Opportunities for Sustainability in Rubber
August 28, 2019
Join us for a multi-stakeholder dialogue near some of the most interesting sustainable rubber farming innovation in Hat Yai, Thailand.
A Dialogue With Halcyon — Encouraging Change in the Rubber Industry
August 14, 2019
Mighty Earth decided to investigate the supply chain of the world’s biggest rubber supplier, Halcyon -- which controls 12 percent of the planet’s rubber. Positive change from this company could be key to transforming the broader industry.
Infographic: The Hidden Cost of Rubber
July 3, 2019
Rubber is everywhere around us: in the tires on your car or bike, in your shoes, in sporting goods, and much more. But did you know the rubber in your everyday products is likely causing massive environmental devastation?
Launch of New Global Platform Sets Stage for Rubber Industry to Address Environmental Damage
March 20, 2019
Mighty Earth joins Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber as Founding Member.
Springing into Action on Rubber
March 18, 2019
As the World Rubber Summit kicks off in Singapore, we explain why Mighty Earth has become a Founding Member of the new Global Platform on Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR).
World’s Largest Tire Manufacturers Roll Backwards on Sustainability
October 25, 2018
Today, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development’s (WBCSD) Tire Industry Project (TIP) launch its long-awaited Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) – but sustainability advocates claim it prohibits key stakeholders like non-governmental and civil society organizations or small scale farmers from having a seat at the table.
Continental and Yokohama Jump on the Almost-Sustainable Rubber Bandwagon
October 19, 2018
One week before the launch of a new Global Platform on Sustainable Natural Rubber hatched by tire companies and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), two big players, Continental and Yokohama, have released their own sustainable rubber purchasing policies
Michelin’s Greenwashing Must End. It’s Time for Sustainable Rubber Production.
October 17, 2018
Rubber harvesting is causing devastation on a massive scale. And as one of the largest tire brands in the world, Michelin should be leading the charge to drive greener practices in the industry. But where the rubber hits the road, Michelin is falling short.
A Fork in the Road for the Rubber Industry?
May 3, 2018
By the shores of Lake Geneva, a modern office building houses a little-known organization that could play a huge part in the fate of the world’s tropical forests.
Tire Monster Tour Launches in Goodyear’s Home State of Ohio
May 1, 2018
On the heels of Goodyear Tire’s announcement of a natural rubber procurement policy that experts are concerned is not strong enough to hold suppliers accountable, Mighty Earth unveils the Tire Monster — a ten-foot tall, 500-pound sculpture made of discarded tires.
Goodyear’s New Deforestation-Free Rubber Policy Falls Short
April 25, 2018
With the recent release of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company’s new Natural Rubber Procurement Policy, experts express concern that this policy may not be strong enough to hold the world’s third-largest tire company’s current suppliers accountable.
The Tire Monster
April 23, 2018
Coming soon to America, there will be a tire monster roaming the streets, and he’s livid about deforestation for rubber.
Victory! Bridgestone, World’s Largest Tire & Rubber Company, Announces End to Deforestation, Land Grabbing
February 6, 2018
Bridgestone Tires, the world’s largest tire and rubber company commits to protecting rainforests that are critical habitat for wildlife like gibbons, orangutans, tigers, and elephants, as well as addressing labor and human rights abuses.
Pirelli Tires Commits to Deforestation Free Rubber
November 19, 2017
Global tire giant Pirelli, a major user of natural rubber, has released a sustainable rubber policy that promises to protect people and forests by banning deforestation, land grabbing, and labor abuse.
Michelin Isn’t Reinventing the Wheel, It’s Reinventing the Rubber Supply Chain
August 30, 2016
Scientists estimate that a forest the size of Indiana will be cut down to plant rubber trees over the next eight years. Michelin, the world’s largest buyer of natural rubber, says the deforestation has to stop and it’s pledging to go green.