"Today soybeans are eating up larger and larger chunks of the Amazon, leading to a 40 percent j
"Today soybeans are eating up larger and larger chunks of the Amazon, leading to a 40 percent jump in deforestation last year, to nearly 10,000 square miles." "Economists say that the main spur to the soybean boom is the emergence of a middle class."
Source: Rohter, Larry, "Relentless foe of the Amazon Jungle: Soybeans," The New York Times, 9/17/03, A3.