NAVENE ELANGOVAN Today Online 2 May 19;
SINGAPORE — A Malaysian government minister has used a speech in Singapore to take a swipe at what she called “sensationalised” signs at Singapore Zoo that deal with palm oil production and deforestation.
Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok called for solidarity among the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) on the issue, in a keynote address at the 6th Singapore Dialogue on Sustainable World Resources, a forum organised by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs, a think-tank.
She said that Malaysia is working hard to create a sustainable palm oil industry and “it is sad to hear that sentiments against palm oil have also taken root in Singapore”.
“For example, the Singapore Zoo has on several occasions created sensationalised displays on palm oil and deforestation at its orangutan’s enclosures,” she told the audience at the Fullerton Hotel Singapore.
“These damage the image of palm oil producing countries within this region despite progressive efforts towards sustainability and wildlife conservation. In this case, Singapore Zoo acted possibly in haste and (is) reflecting emotions expressed by many ill-informed visitors.”
Critics of palm oil production say the clearing of forests to grow the crop destroys important habitats of wildlife, including endangered species.
One sign at the Singapore Zoo now states in part: “Illegal logging and conversion of forests to palm oil plantations are serious threats to rainforest animals.” It was not clear if this was a sign that Ms Kok found objectionable.
Responding to TODAY’s queries, Mr Mike Barclay, the group chief executive officer of Mandai Holding Parks, the parent company of Singapore Wildlife Reserves (WRS), said that public education is a key mission of all the parks operated by WRS, including the zoo.
“We will continue to communicate messages advocating the protection of wildlife and their habitats across all our channels, including animal exhibit interpretives, park posters and our website,” he said.
WRS advocated for “sustainably produced palm oil” and is an active member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, which has its secretariat in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, he added.
Ms Kok said that both producers and traders, including those based in Singapore, benefitted from the trade and export of commodities such as palm and coconut oil, produced in the Asean region.
She called for Asean solidarity on the issue, adding that Malaysia had taken steps to improve its sustainability of the oil palm industry even as it faced criticism from Western countries.
“If the European Union countries can stand united on assumptions of unsustainable production and consumption of palm oil and other forest-based products, we as Asean should stand tall to fight against those unfair and discriminative judgements made by them.”
Ms Kok referred to initiatives by the Malaysian government to create greater sustainability in the palm oil industry, such as capping the expansion of the country’s palm oil plantations at 6.5 million hectares by 2023. She added that Malaysia now has 5.85 million hectares given over to palm oil cultivation.
“However, in striving to achieve such a sustainable consumption and production system, it is important to reflect that (international standards of certification) could evolve as barriers to trade and impinge upon developing nations striving to create more wealth exploitation of their natural resources,” said Ms Kok.
She called the backlash against the palm oil industry created by anti-palm-oil campaigns “extremely provocative and belittling” for Malaysia, and added that there is stigma against the nutritional and health benefits of palm oil.
She said that her ministry had contributed funds to protect wildlife such as orangutan and Borneo pygmy elephants in Sabah, and urged Singapore Zoo to “take note” of the efforts before putting up anti-palm-oil signage.
Elaborating on her remarks to TODAY on the sidelines of the event, Ms Kok urged people in the region, including Singaporeans, to understand the benefits of palm oil and called for Singaporeans to appreciate the efforts by Malaysia to produce palm oil sustainably.
She also said that the Singapore Zoo, which housed tropical animals from Malaysia, should not single out palm oil and called for the zoo to partner with Malaysia on its reforestation and wildlife conservation efforts.
Speaking on the sidelines of the forum, the head of the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC), Dr Kalyana Sundram, told TODAY that the signs that Ms Kok had referred to had been placed beside the orangutan enclosure “for some time”. He added that MPOC had protested against the signs about two years ago ago before the Singapore Zoo “corrected” the information.
Mr Barclay did not respond to questions by TODAY on whether the signs outside the orangutan enclosure had been amended in response to the organisation’s protests.
In his email response, he said: “We trust that ensuring the consumption of certified sustainable palm oil can help minimise the negative impact of palm oil plantations on wildlife and their habitats".
He acknowledged that palm oil is the highest-yielding source of vegetable oil, and that the palm oil industry creates stable employment for many across the region. “Given the efficiency of palm oil production and its ubiquitous use, WRS believes that boycotting of the palm oil industry is not effective,” he added.
Malaysian minister takes aim at 'sensationalised displays' on palm oil at Singapore Zoo
Amir Yusof Channel NewsAsia 2 May 19;
SINGAPORE: Malaysian Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok has accused the Singapore Zoo of putting up displays that shed a negative light on palm oil and called for countries in Southeast Asia to present a united front in supporting the industry.
When delivering her keynote address at the Singapore Dialogue on Sustainable World Resources on Thursday morning (May 2), Ms Kok noted that the zoo's displays at its orangutan enclosure had damaged the image of palm oil producing countries in the region "despite progressive efforts towards sustainability and wildlife conservation”.
“In this case, Singapore Zoo acted possibly in haste and (was) reflecting emotions expressed by some ill-informed visitors,” she added.
In an immediate response to Ms Kok's comments, Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which operates Singapore Zoo, said it advocates sustainably produced palm oil, adding that boycotting the industry is not effective.
A visit by CNA to the Singapore Zoo on Thursday afternoon found the displays explaining that conversion of forests to palm oil plantations is a serious threat to rainforest animals, such as the endangered Borneo orangutan species.
One of the displays read: “Palm oil is used in many products such as bread, cookies, toothpaste etc. Demand for palm oil derived biofuel is also soaring and rainforest animals are losing their habitats faster than ever.”
ASEAN COUNTRIES MUST STAND UNITED ON PALM OIL: TERESA KOK
In her speech, Ms Kok highlighted that Malaysia’s palm oil industry has contributed funds to wildlife conservation in Sabah to protect iconic species such as the orangutan, Borneo pygmy elephant and the sun bear.
She said the curators at the Singapore Zoo should take note of such efforts. "We plan to do far more in Sarawak and in peninsula Malaysia, these are part of our ongoing effort towards sustainable production systems,” she added.
Ms Kok also called for Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries to show solidarity and “be supportive of one another", especially on presenting facts on palm oil.
“If the EU (European Union) countries can stand united on assumptions of unsustainable production and consumption of palm oil ... we as ASEAN should stand tall to fight against those who are unfair and have discriminatory judgments,” she said.
WE WILL CONTINUE WITH PUBLIC EDUCATION: WRS
In its email statement to CNA, Mr Mike Barclay, Group CEO for Mandai Park Holdings - the parent entity of WRS - said WRS believes that boycotting of the palm oil industry is not effective given the efficiency of palm oil production and its ubiquitous use.
"We recognise that palm oil is the highest-yielding source of vegetable oil and the palm oil industry creates stable employment for many people across the region," he said.
Mr Barclay highlighted that WRS is an active member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), an organisation that is committed to protect tropical rainforests that hold large stores of carbon and biodiversity, and are critical for millions of indigenous and local peoples who depend on forests for their livelihoods.
He said WRS applaud RSPO's commitment to protect the high carbon stock rainforests.
“We trust that ensuring the consumption of certified sustainable palm oil can help minimise the negative impact of palm oil plantations on wildlife and their habitats,” he added.
Mr Barclay reiterated that public education is a key mission of all the parks operated by WRS in engaging the community and raising awareness about conservation issues.
“We will continue to communicate messages advocating the protection of wildlife and their habitats across all our channels, including animal exhibit interpretives, park posters and our website,” said Mr Barclay.
READ: Malaysia to 'take advantage' of ECRL deal to sell more palm oil to China: Mahathir
Malaysia is the world's second biggest palm oil producer after Indonesia, and it relies on the crop for billions of dollars in foreign exchange earnings and hundreds of thousands of jobs.
In March, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said the EU risked opening up a trade war with Malaysia over its "grossly unfair" policies aimed at reducing the use of palm oil.
The comments came after the European Commission concluded that palm oil cultivation results in excessive deforestation and its use in transport fuel should be phased out by 2030.
Dr Mahathir had said that the EU's increasingly hostile attitude towards palm oil was an attempt to protect alternatives that Europe produced itself, like rapeseed oil.
In Beijing last week, Dr Mahathir witnessed the signing of a deal for China to buy additional 1.9 million tonnes of palm oil from Malaysia over the next five years.
Source: CNA/am(tx)
Teresa Kok takes on Singapore Zoo over sentiments against palm oil
Bernama New Straits Times 2 May 19;
SINGAPORE: Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok today expressed her disappointment over negative palm oil sentiments having also taken root in Singapore.
Citing an example, she said the Singapore Zoo had on several occasions created sensationalised displays on palm oil and deforestation at its orangutan enclosure.
This, according to her, damaged the image of palm oil producing countries within the region, despite progressive efforts towards sustainability and wildlife conservation.
“In this case, the Singapore Zoo acted possibly in haste and reflected emotions expressed by many ill-informed visitors,” she said in his keynote address on “Connecting Markets, Forging Consensus: Partnerships for Sustainable Palm Oil” at the 6th Singapore Dialogue on Sustainable World Resources, here today.
“On that note, ideally in the interest of ASEAN solidarity, we must be supportive of one another, especially when matters are fact-based and illustrated in a transparent manner,” Kok said. – Bernama
