The debate has come to an end
Today’s palm oil debate has come to an end and, while we hope our summaries in this live blog have been useful, we highly recommend you delve down into the comments section to read the full discussion.
If you have any stories you want to share about consumers and palm oil off the back of this discussion, please get in touch with tess.riley@theguardian.com
And look out for news of our upcoming London seminar in June about consumers and palm oil, where we will be carrying forward today’s discussion. The event page will be published on our palm oil debate series page over the next fortnight.
Thanks again to everyone who took part today.
Getting China on board
Marion Pellegrin, head of sustainability for Olympic, the largest biscuit manufacturer in Bangladesh, has talked about some of the issues she faces working on issues of palm oil sustainability in Bangladesh:
many companies do not have the means to pay for certification. But even if they do, there is no external incentive, as consumers do not apply pressure.
We asked the rest of the panel if they had anything to add about consumer awareness in countries such as China and India, which import significant volumes of palm oil?
Neville says:
The relationship with consumers in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia, China and India is very different than in the West. We see some traction linked to MNC’s operating in those countries with No deforestation commitments buying from responsible sources, but we also see a lot of leakage. A market like China requiring all palm oil to come from sustainable sources would be a fundamental game changer in the sector.
Leonie Lawrence, global palm oil project manager for ZSL’s SPOTT team added:
I think consumer awareness is growing globally and consumers can send a vital signal to brands and to their suppliers. We need to work on bringing the traders and refiners of palm oil in these markets into the debate and encourage them to source sustainably. We cannot focus just on consumers without providing solutions to the companies that are importing palm oil.
The panel at work
Thanks to Ryan for sharing this photo of Mike Bronner hard at work contributing to our palm oil panel!
Mike Bronner of @drbronner participates in a live panel discussion about #palmoil on @GuardianSustBiz w/ @tess_riley https://t.co/VqTBVWSUTZ pic.twitter.com/c3CaWYw9xO
— Ryan Fletcher (@RyanFletcherDC) April 5, 2017
MEPs vote to ban the use of palm oil in biofuels
As the debate continues, we wanted to flag up this development from yesterday, which saw MEPs vote overwhelmingly for a ban on biofuels made from palm oil by 2020.
Traceability and transparency
Something that has come up several times in this debate is transparency. Jonathan Horrell, director of global sustainability for Mondelez, has jumped into the debate and makes this point:
There’s rapid growth in traceability and transparency, driven by technology, data, and demand from end-use businesses and other stakeholders.
Traceability is a way to follow consignments of product through from production to end-use. Transparency is a way to increase visibility of conditions, practices and impacts in supply chains.
Traceability and transparency are not the same. They often use different tools and have different objectives. Traceability is often mistakenly portrayed as an end in itself. This drives companies to pursue it at high cost, without a clear purpose – what change does it drive? – what level of traceability is appropriate? – does full segregation through a supply chain add value, if you already have transparency of conditions, practices and impacts in your supply base?
We use traceability and transparency to support sustainability impact on the ground, for example by tracking and monitoring deforestation risk in palm oil supply chains.
Is responding to consumer backlashes the best way to address supply chain sustainability?
Our second question comes after news that the Bank of England is considering replacing animal fat in banknotes with palm oil, following a public petition. So, what we want to know from the panel is this: is responding to consumer backlashes the best way to address supply chain sustainability?
Neville says:
We assume consumers have the full picture and with something as complex as palm oil it is hard for them to grasp all the nuances...Consumer backlash can be informative as a means of telling you what you need to do better in, sure, but also what you need to communicate better about so consumers can make informed choices more easily.
Katie McCoy, head of forests at CDP, who has joined the discussion, says:
Companies do consider customers as key stakeholders. Rather than being reactive to backlashes, companies should be proactive in publicly stating their goals and targets towards sustainability and transparently communicating their progress regularly.
Meanwhile Ignacio Gavilan, environmental sustainability director, Consumer Goods Forum, sees an opportunity:
There’s a great opportunity here by the Bank of England to show leadership and also educate consumers about palm oil now that they’re on the spot light; in general public procurement could be a GREAT driver of market transformation provided their volumes
Why do people boycott palm oil?
Our first question to the panel goes right to the heart of the debate: why do people boycott palm oil?
Emma Keller, agricultural commodities manager at WWF, says:
Most people hear palm oil and flinch - thinking it is bad and is something they should avoid. As Bastien says, there is a real misconception about palm oil in general that we need to try and address. But there are a lot of on-going issues yet to be solved
Anita Neville, vice president of corporate communications and sustainability relations at Golden Agri-Resources, adds:
I think the palm oil industry of which I am part has done a terrible job of telling the story of some of the very good things that are happening to tackle those challenges. And that palm oil does in terms of livelihood benefits.
But Mike Bronner, president of Dr Bronner’s, points out that consumers are right to question the production of palm oil:
I think people boycott palm oil because they want to find a direct way to enact real change with their buying decisions. This is admirable and effective. Much palm oil indeed is grown on monocultures on huge plantations where rainforest is destroyed to make room for more arable land. Unfortunately, people often “throw out the baby with the bathwater” and end up boycotting all palm oil, even that which is grown sustainably on small plots of land by family farmers.
The palm oil debate is go
Welcome to today’s live chat about palm oil on Guardian Sustainable Business.
Over the next hour we’ll be talking to panellists and readers about what role boycotting can play in creating a more sustainable palm oil industry, how companies can engage with the concerns of their customers and what they are doing about deforestation, biodiversity loss and treatment of workers in the palm oil supply chain.
Join us as we discover more and feel free to put your own question to the panel in the comment space below.
What we’ll be discussing
In response to concerns about the impact of palm oil production on biodiversity, local communities and plantation workers, some individuals and campaign groups have called for a boycott of any products containing the commodity.
Others point out that some of the alternatives to palm oil such as soybean or rapeseed oil come with their own list of problems.
Others still argue that consumer boycotts in Europe and the US are futile when countries such as India and China – two of the world’s largest palm oil importers – leave palm oil’s sustainability credentials largely unquestioned.
Join us on Wednesday 5 April between 1-2pm (BST) as we debate the role of consumer boycotts and where they fit in to the sustainable palm oil debate. Questions we’ll be asking include:
- What role can boycotting play in creating a more sustainable palm oil industry?
- Beyond boycotts, how can consumers improve the sustainability of palm oil?
- How can companies engage with the concerns of their customers?
- What are companies doing about deforestation, biodiversity loss and treatment of workers in the palm oil supply chain?
Updated
Some reading to kick off the debate
The panel
Mike Bronner, president, Dr. Bronner’s. Mike will be joined by Gero Leson, director of special operations, who manages the company’s production facilities for coconut and palm oils in Africa and Asia.
Ignacio Gavilan, environmental sustainability director, Consumer Goods Forum
Emma Keller, agricultural commodities manager, WWF-UK
Leonie Lawrence, global palm oil project manager, ZSL’s SPOTT team
Anita Neville, vice president corporate communications and sustainability relations, Golden Agri-Resources
Marion Pellegrin, head of sustainability, Olympic
Bastien Sachet, chief executive, The Forest Trust
Moderator - Tess Riley, deputy editor, Guardian Sustainable Business
If you would like to be considered please email tess.riley@theguardian.com
Updated
Submit a question for the panel
You can send questions in advance by emailing tess.riley@theguardian.com or tweeting @GuardianSustBiz using the hashtag #AskGSB
How to join in the discussion
Make sure you’re a registered user of the Guardian and join us on Wednesday 5 April between 1-2pm (BST) in the comments section below, which will open on the day of the live chat.
