Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and the UK’s largest asset manager are among 87 major companies and investors who have written to Brazil’s far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, urging his government to stop further deforestation of the Amazon for soy production.

The preservation of the Amazon rainforest, a vital sink for carbon dioxide, is widely considered by scientists and activists to be a priority in responding to the climate crisis. However, the Brazilian soy farmers’ association Aprosoja has mounted a campaign to end a voluntary ban on trading crops harvested from newly cleared land.