”Green” palm oil sales expected to pick up

Palm oil producers in Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea may sell 1 million tonnes of “sustainable” palm oil next year, up ten-fold on 2008 although still only a tiny fraction of global sales, officials said.

Under fire from green groups and some Western consumers, the palm oil industry established the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in 2004 to develop an ethical certification system, including commitments to preserve rainforests and wildlife.
RSPO palm oil sales have been slower than initially envisaged and if next year’s target is reached would still represent only 2.6 percent of the total output of Indonesia and Malaysia, the world’s top two producers.

“With just one and a half months left, sales of sustainable palm oil this year will not be as big as the certified output capacity,” said Derom Bangun, a vice chairman of the RSPO.

Planet Ark