Sportswear giant Adidas has followed its rival Nike to toughen its leather sourcing rules in response to Greenpeace's claims.
The German company said it had asked its Brazilian suppliers to put in place a system to prove that all leather is sourced from cattle outside the Amazon Biome by July 1 2010.
Suppliers will also be asked only to source cattle from legal farms in the area; only to source hides from cattle raised outside the Amazon Biome; and not to source hides from cattle farmed on land disputed by indigenous groups.
The company said it also expected suppliers to source cattle from farms signed up to Brazil's National Pact on the Eradication of Slave Labour, supported by the International Labour Organisation.
Any suppliers listed by Brazil's Ministry of Labour and Employment as being involved with employing slave labour on farms would be suspended immediately.
The company will work with the Leather Working Group to develop a traceability protocol to implement these objectives.
