Forest destruction for palm oil in Papua linked to multi-billion dollar conglomerate the Hayel Saeed Anam (HSA) Group is to be investigated by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO).
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has adopted a new higher standard for palm oil production. But to date the RSPO has failed to ensure adequate compliance with its standard, and only half of RSPO-certified palm oil has been sold.
The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has released its proposed new Principles and Criteria (P&C), due for adoption next month. The new P&C includes ‘no deforestation’ stipulations, although there remain some exceptions which could see forest clearance still occurring
Last week, the European Parliament again called for European Union (EU) action to ensure legal and sustainable commodities, inclusive of palm oil, in an adopted resolution. Illegal land conversion, land-grabbing and deforestation are core justifications for such action
Despite the RSPO stating its new standard will cause ‘no deforestation’, it has created extensive loopholes. The RSPO has considerably adapted an agreed method on ‘no deforestation’ – the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA) – instead creating its own procedures and definitions to suit its own agenda
To meet its pledge to halt deforestation, the European Union needs to act to reduce the deforestation footprint of the commodities it imports, including palm oil