PR News Wire

29 March, 2011

The State Government of Sarawak’s Agricultural Policy prioritises sustainable management of biodiversity as part of its strategy for the growth of palm oil plantation. Sarawak has a total land mass of 12.4 million hectares, of which 70% is under forest cover and 14% is secondary forest. 13% of the land is used for agriculture and the remaining 3% compromise settlements and water bodies. Currently the state has allocated 700,000 hectares of peatlands for palm oil cultivation or approximately 6% of the state’s total land area. Palm oil cultivation accommodates 39% of peatland and 3% of non-peat hillforests; in all, agriculture takes up 43% of Sarawak’s total peatlands and 8% of non-peat forests.

Sarawak fully acknowledges the importance of its peatlands not only as part of the global carbon sink but more so for the livelihood of the local communities that reside along the coastal peatland areas. The majority of Sarawak’s population live along the coastal regions which immediately border the peatland areas and are very much dependent on them for natural reservoirs of freshwater and act as buffer against floods and saline intrusion. Read the rest of this entry »

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By Hanim Adnan

The Star

28 March, 2011

RSPO revamp to better position certified sustainable palm oil initiative

The upscale revamp of Kuala Lumpur-based Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) secretariat, under the stewardship of new secretary-general Darrel Webber, is poised to better position the certified sustainable palm oil (CSPO) initiative to attain more credence and expanded market penetration worldwide.

Established in 2004, the RSPO is a not-for-profit association represented through membership by multi stakeholders from seven sectors of the palm oil industry to develop and implement the global RSPO certification standards for sustainable palm oil. Read the rest of this entry »

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Bernama

24 March, 2011

Malaysia has been very committed in taking care of its virgin forests and fighting illegal logging in nature reserves, said Ambassador and Head of the European Union (EU) Delegation to Malaysia, Vincent Piket.

Piket who is currently heading a EU delegation on a visit to Sabah, which is a major contributor to the nation’s palm oil industry, said many of the larger palm oil producers in the country were moving towards sustainable production, knowing well the consumers and market demands in Europe.

“What we heard today during meetings with government officials are very encouraging, and there have been wonderful examples of industry players around.
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The Borneo Post

22 March, 2011

The State Government has been urged to review all coastline projects following the recent tsunami in Japan.

Sabah Environmental Protection Association (Sepa) president Wong Tack said the tsunami, which badly hit Japan and Acheh several years back, should serve as lessons to all.

“We are concerned over the government’s move to clear a vast area of mangrove to make way for an oil palm plantation in Lahad Datu,” he said.

Wong said that the Palm Oil Industrial Cluster (POIC), a government-owned company, is involved in the clearing of lands in several areas in Tungku and Kunak, including the mangroves, which were supposed to cushion tsunami waves.

He said the government had, initially, encouraged the protection of the swamp and mangroves after studies showed lower tsunami impact in those areas.

“The state government should not compromise on the matter for the sake of the people, particularly those living in the low-lying coastal areas.

“Anything can happen. That is why we need to take precautionary measures,” said Wong.

He pointed out that Sepa is not against development. “It needs to be done responsibly. This is for the good of the present and future generations,” he said.

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by Tim Newman

Change.org

16 March, 2011

A number of major multinational corporations have recently released a wave of new commitments to responsibly sourcing palm oil for their products due to the ongoing human and labor rights violations and environmental damage linked to the conventional production of this ubiquitous ingredient. However, one of the largest corporations involved in palm oil production, Cargill, is failing to act. And not they’re lagging behind the rest of the industry in responsible palm oil.

As we have discussed on this blog before, the largest producers of palm oil often export product which has been tainted by forced and child labor. The U.S. Department of Labor and others have documented labor rights exploitation, including both forced and abusive child labor on palm oil plantations in Malaysia and Indonesia. Workers have reported being tricked into working on plantations with the use of force where they had to labor in dangerous conditions for long hours with little or no pay. While palm oil is an ingredient in a large number of the food and Read the rest of this entry »

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by Churchill Edward.

The Borneo Post

15 March, 2011

Western media and blogs are out to campaign against oil palm development in Sarawak to make the state forever subservient to the West.

They are out to destroy the state economically by using environmental issues as weapon, said deputy permanent secretary to the Ministry of Planning and Resource Management Datu Len Talif Salleh when refuting claims that Sarawak is going for 90 per cent deforestation by 2020.

“I say this because there were factual errors in their erroneous claims,” he charged when singling out environmental blog ‘The Independent’ for making erroneous claims. Read the rest of this entry »

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Bernama

15 March, 2011

Felda Global Group and Mission Biotechnologies Sdn Bhd have entered into a long term supply agreement to establish Asia’s first fully integrated International Sustainability and Carbon Certification System (ISCC) certified palm biodiesel supply and production chain.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, both parties said they would work together to extend the certification programme to other Felda mills and plantations, to expand supply of ISCC certified biodiesel through Mission Biotechnologies refineries.

Felda is one of the world’s largest palm oil producer and Mission Biotechnologies is a global leader in providing energy from renewable origins. Read the rest of this entry »

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Bakeryinfo.co.uk

11 March, 2011

Pressure on bakers to use sustainable palm oil is set to mount after New Britain Oils announced plans to open a UK processing facility producing bakery fats made with fully segregated, certified palm oil.

Around £9m is being invested at the firm’s Liverpool refinery, enabling it to supply margarines and bakery fats for use in pastries, cakes, puff and shortcrust pastry, shortenings and bread fats from the second quarter of 2012.

The facility is the first of its kind in the UK and will have a capacity of 75,000 tonnes, processing sustainable palm oil from fully traceable sources in Papua New Guinea and The Solomon Islands.

Bako will be among the companies distributing the ingredients, with products expected to cost the same as those made with non-sustainable palm oil. Read the rest of this entry »

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