Friends of the Earth Campaign

Demand for palm oil, a vegetable oil present in 1 in 10 supermarket products, is the most significant cause of rainforest loss in Malaysia and Indonesia.

Palm oil plantations destroy biodiversity and are associated with human rights violations and worker exploitation.

Did you know?

Palm oil is found in 1 in 10 food products - including chocolate, bread, crisps, detergents and lipsticks.

In Indonesia, the area of land occupied by palm oil plantations has doubled in the last 10 years. This threatens species with extinction, including the:

• Orang-utan
• Sumatran tiger

The palm oil industry is now considered by scientists as the biggest threat to the orang-utan.

The industry could drive the orang-utan to extinction within 12 years.

If no action is taken we will have to explain to our children that the orang-utan became extinct, not because of a lack of knowledge, but because of corporate greed and a lack of political will.

Ian Redmond, Chairman of the Ape Alliance

Most UK supermarkets, importers and manufacturers have refused to take action to get their palm oil from less destructive sources.

A Friends of the Earth survey showed that 84% of UK companies don't even know where their palm oil comes from.

Friends of the Earth says:

• Company law must be changed to minimise the environmental and social damage of UK business.
• Companies must stop buying palm oil from destructive sources immediately.

Press for change

Tell the Government to take action
Email the Minister of State for Industry and the Regions. Tell him the industry's failure to take effective action is yet another example of UK corporate irresponsibility.

Resource

The oil for ape scandal: How palm oil is threatening the orang-utan
(PDF† 448K) Sept 2005
This summary report links the demand for palm oil to the impending extinction of the orang-utan, rainforest destruction and human rights abuses.

Greasy palms - Palm Oil, The Environment and Big Business
(PDF† format - 832K) March 2004
Palm oil, the hidden ingredient in thousands of everyday products, is driving rainforest destruction. This report summarises the connection between palm oil, the environment and big business.

Greasy palms - European buyers of Indonesian palm oil
(PDF† format - 508K) March 2004
This report covers a research project undertaken for Friends of the Earth in 2003 into the palm oil industry in South East Asia, its links to the European market and the involvement of European companies in the palm oil trade.

Greasy Palms - The social and ecological impacts of large-scale oil palm plantation development
(PDF† format - 751K) March 2004
This report covers a research project undertaken for Friends of the Earth in 2003 into the social and environmental impacts of the palm oil industry in South East Asia.

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