Brazilian banks have promised to deny credit to companies that produce, process or export beef that buy cattle in illegally deforested areas in the Amazon, the financial sector employers reported on May 30. The commitment is part of a new rule approved by the Self-Regulation Council of the Brazilian Federation of Banks (Febraban) to help fight deforestation in the largest tropical forest in the world in Brazil, the world's largest producer and exporter of meat bovine. "The new regulation establishes a partnership and a common protocol for managing the risk of illegal deforestation in credit operations with beef processing and exporting companies," Febraban said in a statement. According to the note, banks that commit to self-regulation will have to require sector clients who aspire to loans to implement a tracking and monitoring system that allows them to demonstrate that they did not acquire cattle raised in illegally deforested areas. The tracking system will be mandatory as of ...