As an organisation working on the ground in Indonesia we believe a total ban on palm oil  isn’t the best option to resolve the issue. Palm oil is cheap to produce, has many desirable qualities for a variety of product uses, and is deeply intertwined with the local economies and  livelihoods of the people in Indonesia.

According to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, (RSPO), in Indonesia alone, there are 16 million workers in the palm oil supply chain, of which 3.78 million are plantation workers.

It also produces the highest yield, which is why sustainably produced palm oil is regarded as the most sustainable of the vegetable oils – including rapeseed, sunflower, and soybean oil. If palm oil production were to cease it would create a cascade effect causing other vegetable oils with lower yields to ramp up their production, with their own ecological footprint.

This is why we see the growth of the sustainable palm oil industry as the best path forward for Indonesia, its people, its biodiversity, and the world.

No, a thriving sustainable palm oil industry exists today. The sustainable palm oil industry produces the product that is so valuable to our daily lives while drastically minimising harm to local communities or the environment. To achieve this, major palm oil producers have in the past few years adopted policies that promise no deforestation, no peat development, and no employee exploitation.

Many of these requirements are reflected in what is widely considered to be the industry’s most comprehensive way to identify sustainable palm oil: the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil’s (RSPO) certification system.

Laws around the world vary, so it is important to look up how palm oil is required to be labelled where you live.In the UK, if a consumable product contains palm oil, it must be included in the ingredients list. Almost all products that have made the correct decision to move away from unsustainable palm oil will label this accolade on their packaging. You can look for the RSPO logo, or for statements that this product is palm oil free.

If you can’t find either of these, and palm oil isn’t clearly labelled on the ingredients list, it is important to know that companies hide the use of palm oil under many other names. Common deceptive names are “vegetable oil blends”, “palm fruit oil”, and “Vegetable Glycerin”. Here is a list of alternate names to assist you.

Cosmetics are particularly hard to identify if palm oil is used. You can always ask an associate at a store or use an online chat feature for assistance. If they don’t know, at least they are learning that this is a concern for their customers. Every voice counts!

Don’t waste them! Finish them up and next time around look for a product with the RSPO certification label, or if there isn’t an alternative, find one that doesn’t use unsustainable palm oil. The list of good products grows daily.

You could also write to the companies who manufactured the products and tell them that because of their irresponsible palm oil policy, you will be using alternate products until they make the switch to a sustainably sourced oil. Encourage them to adopt better procedures, and never doubt consumer power, these companies use customer feedback to drive change.