A case study from Friends of the Earth U.S. examines the negative environmental and social impacts of a 2022 $275M loan by International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector arm of the World Bank, to the Netherlands-based agri-commodity giant Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC).
Despite IFC’s stated intention to promote sustainability and help LDC meet its zero-deforestation and emissions reduction commitments, the report finds little evidence that the financing has delivered measurable progress. Instead, it reveals systemic environmental and human rights concerns tied to LDC’s operations, raising broader questions about IFC’s role in financing industrial agribusiness.
The report finds:
- Deforestation impact uncertain: While a primary focus of IFC’s $275 investment was supporting LDC’s zero-deforestation commitment, the loan supported soy and corn purchases in regions of Brazil that had already been largely deforested. Absent plantation-level data, it is impossible to verify whether IFC’s funding prevented any habitat loss.
- Climate goals unmet: LDC lagged behind peers in climate action. As of early 2025, the company still lacks a Scope 3 emissions reduction target, despite IFC’s advisory support.
- Misaligned with the Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development Goals: IFC’s $275M loan was not aligned with Paris Agreement targets or UN Sustainable Development Goals. Industrial monocropping supported by the loan continues to erode biodiversity, water systems, and community health.
- Social harms overlooked: IFC did not adequately assess or disclose the risks of land grabbing, pollution, and human rights abuses associated with LDC’s supply chain—many of which extend beyond the project’s narrow “ringfenced” scope.
- Inadequate safeguards applied: IFC applied only two of its Performance Standards (PS2 and PS6) to the project, excluding those addressing pollution and community health (PS3 and PS4), despite clear relevance.
- Questionable additionality: LDC reported $60B in annual revenue and $11B in liquidity at the time of the loan. The company did not need IFC financing—and likely would have continued operations without it.
“This case suggests the IFC is failing to live up to its climate and sustainability commitments,” said Ashley Schaeffer Yildiz, Program Manager at Friends of the Earth U.S. “Funding a high-emitting, heavily capitalized agribusiness giant like LDC undermines climate action and worsens conditions for communities and ecosystems already under pressure.”
Unsustainable Investment: International Finance Corporation’s Support for Industrial Agribusiness in Brazil calls for IFC to halt financing of industrial livestock feed supply chains and adopt stronger due diligence, transparency, and accountability standards for all agribusiness projects.
As the report concludes: “IFC cannot credibly claim alignment with climate or development goals while funding business-as-usual operations in high-emission, industrial agribusiness.”
For more information, you can find the full report, Unsustainable Investment: International Finance Corporation’s Support for Industrial Agribusiness in Brazil, here.
Contact: Ashley Schaeffer Yildiz, [email protected]
