Indonesia is the biggest palm oil producer in the world. Alongside Malaysia, both countries dominate 85% of the global market. Palm oil is considered one of the strategic commodities in…
Nutella lovers can continue to indulge in the chocolate-hazelnut spread without fear of health risks from the palm oil it contains, according to the product’s manufacturer, Ferrero. In October, the…
As palm oil has become one of the most in-demand global commodities over the past several years, oil palm plantations have proliferated quickly throughout the tropics. Oil palm is currently…
2015 was supposed to be a big year for the palm oil industry — the year it proposed to reach a “tipping point” and begin predominantly producing and trading palm…
Industrial oil palm oil plantations in Southeast Asia have caused regional greenhouse gas emissions levels to spike and led to widespread deforestation and loss of biodiversity. So as global demand…
In the wake of escalating public attention to the impact of palm oil plantations on the environment and global climate, a new report commissioned by signatories to the Sustainable Palm…
Will India use its influence as the world's top importer of palm oil to push sustainability?
Palm oil production companies maintain palm oil expansion will bring good jobs to Liberia, but critics say that's not the case.
Some communities are eager to participate Liberia's expanding palm oil industry, while others say their land was taken from them without their permission.
ivil society groups are calling for the palm-oil sector’s primary certification body to follow up on an investigation by the Wall Street Journal which provides evidence of slavery on plantations…
osmetics giant Avon promised today to purge its palm oil supply chain of deforestation and rights abuses, making it the latest in a wave of major producers and consumers of the…
Part four in a five-part series on the links between business practices and deforestation in palm oil industry. Parts one, two and three. key component of the palm oil industry that is…
ommunity members in Liberia were threatened with violence and urged to sign unfavorable land deals with palm oil company Golden Veroleum Liberia (GVL) at the height of last year’s Ebola…
A new report from Friends of the Earth builds on accusations that the Nigerian palm oil operations of Wilmar, one of the world’s largest agribusiness companies, are founded on a…
A partnership with foreign investors aims to scale up the East African nation’s production of palm oil, but details on its implementation and possible consequences remain scarce. Plans for a…
This red-breasted blackbird (Sturnella militaris) is one of the relatively few bird species that is found in oil palm plantations. Photo by Alexander Lees. It may not surprise you to…
Over the past two years dozens of companies have established "zero-deforestation" or "deforestation-free" policies for the commodities they source, trade, and produce. The pace of adoption has been staggeringly fast…
Publicly-traded firm suspends new business with company planning to clear peatlands in Sarawak Palm oil growers who plan to convert peatlands and rainforests for new plantations have been warned: one…
June 23 update BLD Plantation Bhd, a Malaysian palm oil company, plans to clear some 14,000 hectares of peatlands in Sarawak, on the island of Borneo, potentially putting it in…
Orangutan orphaned after its mother was killed in an oil palm plantation in Sumatra. Photos by Rhett A. Butler. Shoppers may be willing to pay a 15 to 56 percent…
Protesters demonstrate in front of Bolloré’s headquarters near Paris calling on the multinational conglomerate to return land, or compensate farmers, over disputed concessions for plantations in Cambodia and three African…
by 20 May 2015
VICE correspondent Ben Anderson with conservationist Mike Griffiths walking in a hazy Indonesian village. Credit: Jackson Fager/HBO For the sixth episode of its third season, HBO’s Emmy-winning news series, VICE,…
A Sumatran elephant of the sort that lives in the Leuser Ecosystem. Photo: Rhett A. Butler A new report provides evidence that a supplier of palm oil giants Wilmar and…
Forest cleared for oil palm in West Kalimantan. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has prohibited Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), one of its most prominent…
Due to its widening impact on tropical forests yet high profit margins, palm oil is one of the most polarizing crops in the tropics. Scientists and environmentalists warn of the…
A sustainable-business forum in Indonesia's Riau province urged the government to support companies' zero-deforestation commitments, which remain hampered by policies that prevent firms from preserving forests in their concessions. Under…
An oil palm estate in North Sumatra. Photo: Rhett A. Butler Executives from palm oil giants Wilmar, Cargill and Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) appeared at a green investment summit in Jakarta…
Part 3 of 5 of a series on palm oil financing. Part I and Part II. Note: this article draws heavily from Seymour el al 2015. Rainforest canopy seen from…
Forest clearing for an oil palm in Malaysia. Photos by Rhett A. Butler Yum! Brands, the company that owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, on Thursday announced a zero…
Part 2 of 5 of a series on palm oil financing. Part I. Deforestation for palm oil production. Photos by Rhett A. Butler. Today, oil palm is Indonesia’s most important…
