PRIMARY Industries Minister Teresa Kok’s call to manufacturers to add a “Love My Palm Oil” label to palm oil products and for Malaysians to consume more palm oil (March 13) is not a solution to the European Union’s proposed ban on palm oil biodiesel.
The issue is not that European countries are unaware the ban would disrupt the country’s economy and livelihood of smallholders. It is because the EU and its member states know that economic pressure is the only way they can get palm-oil producing nations to prioritise environmental protection.
It is not disputed that palm oil is cheaper and more resource-efficient than other vegetable oils. Alternative vegetable oil crops such as rapeseed and soy may use up to 10 times more land than oil palm.
However, merely pointing out that other vegetable oil crops are just as damaging, and alleging victimisation and protectionism by European nations are not going to influence European nations’ and consumers’ perception of Malaysian palm oil.
The appropriate response to remove the stigma would be to take transparent, credible, and measurable steps to reduce deforestation and other environmental and human rights impacts of palm oil.
The problem with the Roundtable For Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification is that the international scientific and environmental communities do not consider either certification “trustworthy”.
The main criticism against MSPO is that the organisation playing a vital role in its formulation and moderation is the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB), which is invested in oil palm cultivation and expansion, thus giving rise to allegations of conflict of interest and lack of independence.
As for RSPO, only late last year did it adopt new standards prohibiting the clearing of any type of forest for oil palm cultivation. There are also reports to support the claim of malpractice and corruption by RSPO auditors.
Malaysia should adopt the independently verified standards that are being trialled by producers in the Palm Oil Innovation Group, a collection of entities including Greenpeace and progressive producers that aim to provide independently verified, responsibly produced palm oil.
These standards use the RSPO as a basis, but establish additional requirements on palm oil producers.
Environmental agencies are not calling for a halt to economic growth, but for proper management of natural resources and protection of forests, wildlife, labour and indigenous rights. Malaysia has to recognise that there is a problem, and rise up to be part of the solution.
Satellite data does not lie. Between 2001 and 2017, Malaysia lost some 7.29 million hectares of tree cover to oil palm cultivation. Malaysia needs to prove to the world that palm oil can be produced responsibly.
WONG EE LYNN
Malaysian Nature Society, Selangor branch