Indonesia: WWF Alarmed by Oil Palm Grown in Sumatra National Park

Pallavi Gummalam Jakarta Globe 5 Aug 13;

The World Wide Fund for Nature said it found Asian Agri and Wilmar, two of the world’s biggest palm oil concerns, were recently buying palm fruit that had been grown illegally in the Tesso Nilo complex in Riau, Sumatra, which extends into the Tesso Nilo National Park.

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), a self-regulating industry body, responded by emphasizing a rule that says oil mills must “record the origins of all third-party sourced fresh fruit.”

“[Criteria 2013 ] requires complete transparent control of the entire supply chain, from field to factory,” the organization said in a statement over the weekend.

RSPO said Asian Agri and Wilmar were cooperating and would stop buying palm clusters from illegally cleared land. Assuming continued cooperation on the matter, the organization said, no official complaint against these companies would be lodged for the time being.

A report published in early July by the WWF underscored its determination to see that all palm oil buyers ask suppliers about the production chain to ensure compliance with laws. It also suggested that destruction of forested areas in Indonesia, at least in part, resulted from a lack of the country’s failure to enforce its own laws.

The RSPO said its own standards for sustainable palm oil production are very high, adding that it was developing measures for its members to ensure careful screening of the source of the fresh palm bunches they purchase. It also acknowledged the challenges for companies and the Indonesian government in encouraging transparency and abating unsustainable palm oil practices.

The watchdog groups were calling the case of Asian Agri and Wilmar an “alarm” warning for the Indonesian government to tighten up legal requirements and procedures for responsibly sourcing produce used by the palm oil industry.