Oil crop supply chains drive rising global biodiversity loss and outsource impacts to the tropics

Oil crop expansion threatens global biodiversity, yet its supply chain impacts remain poorly quantified. Here we analyse biodiversity impacts along oil crop supply chains from 1995 to 2020 using spatially explicit assessments, a hybridized multi-regional input-output framework, enhanced supply chain mapping and structural decomposition analysis. By 2020, oil crop cultivation caused the potential long-term loss of 1.5% of global species (plants and terrestrial vertebrates), with oil palm, coconuts and soybeans responsible for three-quarters of this effect. Tropical regions, occupying just under half of harvested area, bear almost four-fifths of impacts. More than half of this loss was outsourced through international trade, as major importers displace biodiversity burdens to tropical regions. Biodiversity impacts increased by four-fifths since 1995, statistically attributed primarily to rising per capita consumption. Our findings identify production hotspots and consumption-side contributions, supporting targeted interventions to mitigate biodiversity impacts along oil crop supply chains.