"Ecuador pig & poultry farm pollution sparks protest amid IDB, IFC loans", 02 August 2023

...The Tsáchila Indigenous communities of the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Ecuador, have spent more than two decades speaking out against the air and water pollution caused by the waste from pig and poultry farms owned by Pronaca, an Ecuadorian company that operates in the food production sector and is one of the country’s five biggest companies.

...Pronaca has received $170 million from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) — the private sector arm of the World Bank — and $50 million from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)...

On June 5, the Ecuadorian Coordinating Committee for the Defense of Nature and the Environment (CEDENMA) published the report “The environmental and Social Impacts of IDB Invest and IFC investments in Pronaca’s activities in Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, Ecuador”...

CEDENMA’s report said the region’s Indigenous groups were not even informed, let alone consulted, by the company about its intentions to expand their operations in the area. Nor were they consulted by the IFC or IDB before the financial credits were awarded.

In a letter, the IDB told CEDENMA that during the structuring phase of the loan, “legal due diligence” was carried out, analyzing all the legal cases, complaints and environmental, social and labor-related proceedings that involved Pronaca at the time. Likewise, the bank said that during a supervision meeting it carried out in April 2022, a number of meetings were held, including some with governmental bodies, “where it was confirmed that the company’s environmental cases and complaints are in the closing stages and there are no significant environmental or social risks perceived.” Likewise, during these meetings it was also confirmed that, up until that point, there were no administrative proceedings relating to fines, penalties or notices of closure against the company...

In an official statement in response to Mongabay Latam’s enquiries, the IFC said that they promote sustainable economic growth in Ecuador by financing and mobilizing capital for private sector projects. “Pronaca has been an IFC client since 2004, and our efforts have helped the company to improve its environmental and social standards on its farms and processing plants in line with the IFC’s Performance Standards, and with the bank’s environmental, health and safety guidelines and industry best practices.”

The financial corporation added that it always asks its clients to develop solid biosecurity, animal health and management system protocols in line with acceptable international guidelines.

Mongabay Latam also contacted the IDB to ask about the environmental and social criteria for awarding loans; however, by the publication of this report, no response had been received...

Mongabay Latam contacted Pronaca to hear its version of the fate of the $100 million loans it obtained in 2021 and what it had to say about the local communities’ claims about the lack of prior consultation and the lack of proper waste management from its pig and chicken farms. At the time of publication of this report, no response had been received...