Every religion has taught us about the consequences of being avaricious. Modern society is based on a form of consumerism society where everything is produced at large scale for cheaper prices. Palm Oil is a predominant ingredient in everyday consumption.
Don’t believe it ? Have a look at this. Palm oil can be found in various products ranging from cosmetics to instant noodles. By way of mere example, palm oil is the largest single ingredient in products as disparate as Herbal Essence shampoo and Elmlea vegan alternative double cream. The three key drivers of intensive palm oil production are high-yield crop , higher oxidisation stability and rise of ” fast consumption“. The palm oil industry has ravaged forests globally. According to a 2021 WWF report, two of the nine deforestation zones in Asia are located in the islands of Sumatra and Borneo and are victims of the insatiable thirst for palm oil. The report’s purpose is to highlight the insidious nature of Palm oil industry in Indonesia and Malaysia. It brings insight into how modern day palm oil industry is a menace to our society. It doesn’t intend to be negative in any shape or form. Instead, it demands accountability.
The palm oil genesis
Palm oil was first imported from the West Africa. In the 1800s, it became a commercial crop in the lush rainforest in Malaysia and Indonesia. It is important to note that no essential commodity can be used as a scapegoat to enable us to cast a blind eye against the humans behind it. The Palm oil industry contributes around more than 14% of Indonesia’s total non-oil and gas export foreign exchange earnings. The huge commodity export dependency is concerning for any developing countries . It holds the country at the mercy of volatile price shocks and dilly-dallies of climate change. In order to combat the price volatility in domestic oil supply, the Indonesian government needed to halt its palm oil production in 2022.
In March 2022, the Indonesian trade minister, Muhammed Lutfi accused the ” mafias” of creating palm oil scarcity. The question one needs to ask is ” Who is the mafia?”. The answer is not a God-Father entity lurking in the dark, it is the opaque policy makers creating the ” scarcity”. The biggest mafias are the palm oil billionaires. The Palm oil billionaires use sophisticated mechanisms such as using shadow companies to clear forests for Palm oil fields.
The Salim Group and other corporations have used shadow companies to escape the NDPE clauses and continue with their unethical practices. The Palm oil billionaires have been accused of bribing and money laundering to acquire forest lands. It is estimated that 1000 Orangutan are killed per year to acquire 300 football field equivalent land. It is important to note that it puts orangutan on the critically endangered list over the years. Clearing up the lush foliage is an invitation for poachers looking to steal Orangutan babies as exotic pets. Palm oil expansion documents biodiversity decline, greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution.
Some say that there is sustainable palm oil and expanding the fields “sustainably” is a win-win solution. There have been significant organizations such as the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) to ensure ethical production. However, the consumers have lost confidence in assurance committee given that enables greenwashing. Several environmental NGOs such as EIA, and Green Peace have criticised the organisation for not auditing companies properly and being manipulated by their members or mainly the” Palm oil corporations”.
The Palm oil corporations do not only violate the rights of Orangutan, they also violate the rights of human beings. According to Verisk Maplecroft, Palm oil and Cobalt mining is at the highest risk of land grabbing. It has displaced indigenous tribes in West Papua New Guinea. The certification auditors overlooking the indigenous communities regard this as extremely concerning. The hunter-gatherer community’s traditional way of living is in danger. The Palm oil industry often targets migrant labourers, indigenous communities to become the ” modern-day slaves”. The systemic abuse results from relaxed labor laws and belonging to marginalised communities. The land displacement does play an important part in subjecting indigenous labours in debt-bondage labour and other degrading labour practices to the palm oil “tycoons”. It can be further be sustained by Corporate giants such as Nestle, Colgate and Unilever being associated with child labour practices in the Palm oil supply chain. It only highlights the empty promises of these so-called assurance organizations.
What way forward?
This uncovers the underbelly of palm oil productions. It has a disastrous impact on environment and communities at large.
It will be hypocritical to put a blanket ban on Palm oil. It will also be hypocritical for the writer to squarely put the blame on corporations while beautifying herself with beauty products. It is time that as consumers, we demand companies use better palm oil alternatives or encourage companies to find better palm oil production practices. It is clear that the Palm oil industry is a menace to our society and environment. It is time to use the power of our words and knowledge to manifest a greener world.
