World’s Biggest Palm Oil Trader Shamed

Wilmar, the world’s biggest trader in palm oil, is illegally logging rainforests, setting forests on fire and violating the rights of local communities in Indonesia, according to a new report published today by Friends of the Earth Netherlands.

Paul de Clerck, Corporates Campaigner at Friends of the Earth International, said: “This report reveals that Indonesian palm oil traded by Wilmar is scandalous and damaging the environment. Forests are being cut and burnt down illegally, Indonesian laws are being broken and local people are suffering.”
Europe is one of the world’s biggest palm oil importers, with palm oil used as an ingredient in many food products and cosmetics, and increasingly as a biofuel. Wilmar supplies multinational companies such as Unilever, Nestle and Cargill.

Rully Syumanda, Forest Campaigner at Friends of the Earth Indonesia / WALHI said: “Europe’s growing demand for palm oil is leading to environmental and social devastation”.

The palm oil industry has attempted to market the trade as environmentally and socially sustainable, but this report exposes these policies as hollow and inadequate. Singapore-based multinational Wilmar is a member of the industry-led Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and is funded by the World Bank’s private arm as well as private European banks which have codes of conduct against unsustainable palm oil. Rabobank and Standard Chartered Bank are the main European financers.

Anne van Schaik of Friends of the Earth Netherlands (Milieudefensie) said: “Rabobank apparently has a code of conduct for financing palm oil, but absurdly this doesn’t apply to the handful of general loans that the bank gives to Wilmar. The code of conduct is therefore meaningless – boosting Rabobank’s image but doing nothing to protect against illegal deforestation.”

The report demonstrates the danger of the European Union’s recent commitment to replace 10% of its transport fuel market with biofuels by 2020.

Common Dreams