Many of the products that are most harmful to the world’s forests, and the communities that depend on them, can be found on the shelves of big-box stores and major supermarkets, according to a new Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) report.

From major toilet paper brands sourced from the boreal forest of Canada to dish detergents containing Indonesian palm oil, many retailers profit off countless consumer brands that drive the degradation or loss of critical forests, according to the NRDC.

Selling the World’s Forests details how top retailers neglect to stock store shelves with sustainably made options.

“Even when consumers want to vote with their dollars for sustainable goods, all too often retailers don’t carry them,” said Ashley Jordan, corporate campaign advocate at NRDC and author of the June 25 report. “Retailers need to step up and provide access to truly sustainable products for their shoppers, because how can you vote for something that’s not even on the ballot?”

NRDC representatives said retailers dictate what products are available to shoppers, and they could use their position to put forest- and climate-friendly options front and center. Instead, the 15-page report noted, many major retailers such as Walmart, Costco, and Home Depot continue push the sale of consumer brands made with harmful “forest-risk commodities” — raw materials and goods known for perpetuating deforestation and forest degradation at a global scale, exacerbating the dual climate and biodiversity crises, and creating harmful consequences for human rights and public health.

The recent report, however, shows that the market is shifting, and investors, policymakers, and consumers are demanding retailers take responsibility for their part in securing a livable future and curbing the mounting financial risk presented by a business-as-usual approach to forests.

Globally, some 250 million acres of net forest area have been lost — and likely an even larger area degraded — over the past two decades, the majority of which can be tied to the production of just a handful of global commodities that end up in a range of consumer goods, according to the NRDC.

Selling the World’s Forests provides a series of case studies highlighting retailers that are profiting from destructive commodities and the resulting financial risk posed to shareholders.

For example, brands linked to environmental and human rights abuses in Indonesia are still available at Home Depot, Kroger, Lowe’s, and Walmart

“Retailers are lining their shelves with products that are devastating climate-critical forests, like Charmin and Bounty, which are made from nearly 100 percent forest fiber; meanwhile, they’re leaving sustainable alternatives out of their stores,” Jordan said. “But driven by groundbreaking regulatory policies and trailblazing shareholder actions, the landscape is changing, meaning there’s no better time for retailers to meet their responsibilities to their investors, consumers and the planet.”

The report charts a course of action for retailers to take to avoid fueling deforestation, forest degradation, and associated human rights abuses in both their direct supply chains and those of the products they sell.

The recommendations include: consider alternatives to forest-risk commodities; adopt commitments to No Deforestation, No Peat and No Exploitation and no forest degradation across all forest-risk commodity supply chains; require all suppliers that provide forest-risk commodities used in private-label products and those manufactured by brands obtain the free, prior, and informed consent of Indigenous people who could be impacted by their operations; and support public policies that set standards for responsible forest sourcing.