FROM BELÉM (PA) — Medium-rare meat circulating through the room, cold draft beer, a table full of side dishes and the samba-pagode of the local band Frutos do Nosso Quintal. This is how Monday (17) ended for Abiec (Brazilian Association of Meat Exporting Industries) at COP30.
The barbecue hosted by the organization at the CNA (Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock) pavilion within Agrizone, aimed, according to the invitation, to “highlight the excellence of Brazilian beef,” featuring certified cuts and guest chefs. In practice, it was a VIP event to please partners and authorities and reinforce the narrative that livestock farming is part of the solution to the climate crisis.
The area set up by Embrapa (Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation) for COP30 and with CNA as the main sponsor is an agribusiness space located 2 km from the official conference pavilion, specifically designed to reinforce the argument for the sector’s sustainability.
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Access to the meat was controlled by yellow wristbands. Only those who had attended at least one of the four lectures of the day—or those close to the organization—were allowed in. When a journalist received her wristband, the president of Abiec, Roberto Perosa, interrupted jokingly: “Are you going to give her the wristband? Is she a vegetarian?” The press officer laughed and replied: “She deserves it.”
Security guards barred anyone without a wristband. Even the dogs that roam around Agrizone were kept outside. Some officials, however, entered without difficulty.
One of the most important guests entered discreetly: the Minister of Agriculture, Carlos Fávaro. He has been using a building next door as his office during COP30. When approached by Repórter Brasil, he said he was on “leisure time” and would not give an interview.
Also present at the barbecue was wood trader Silvério Fernandes. In 2002, three years before s