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Palm Oil & Deforestation: fact or fiction?

Frank Tate

Have you ever noticed that a flock of Lembu or cows, all tend to move together in the same direction? Have you often wondered why this happens?

Imagine that you take a slow and leisurely drive along a picturesque country of Malaysia beautiful roads, away from the speeding juggernauts and cars on the North-South highway. As you drive, you take in all areas of the hut bearing, the oil palm plantations stretching as far as the eye can see. Suddenly, something catches your attention. It is a flock Lembu forward in an open field nearby. Curiosity prevails and you park on the road to continue the investigation. And there you stand beside your car in the middle of nowhere, watching the herd instinct in action.

For unexplained reasons, you scramble towards a low wooden fence and catch up Lembu the herd slowly its way into the area of the hut. Curious to know why they all move in the same direction, we look towards the center of the herd and wonder aloud: "Why all Lembu the walk in this particular direction, like the autopilot?

When I pose this question to all my seminars, the answer I heard from delegates from around the world is invariably the same: "They are all moving in the same direction, because everybody is!"

People and organizations too are like this herd of Lembu. They also are strongly influenced by the direction of the herd around. Just look at the behavior some NGOs in the developed world.

Firstly, we have something called the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). Helmed by its Executive Director, the famous Michael Jacobson, and supported by an annual budget of more than $ 16 million, CSPI has launched disinformation campaigns Malaysian Palm Oil cons. In fact, so disingenuous claims was Jacobson who has earned the rare distinction of being called various things in the media – From the benign lawyer "consumer" of the less flattering "Nutrition terrorists," "terrorist," "Food Cop "," Killjoy "," Food Fascist, "" Food Nazi "etc. In fact, the labels will appear with a regularity Astonishing such in the media that few men could have been so definitively defined.

Jacobson, to put it mildly, is guilty of a disregard for the truth and scientific facts, frequently exaggerating figures and claims to advance own agenda CSPI

Having failed in a campaign in the eighties to describe palm oil as unhealthy, Jacobson and CSPI have dug their brains collectively on how to discredit what is, by nature, oil healthy. Health claims or the opposite, "non-health claims, of course, must be supported by sound science. However, these are matters that CSPI, despite their grandiose-sounding name and associative and scientists would have difficulty in implementation. Run the numbers and "facts" that would fail to pass muster for a science project high school, CSPI recklessly and with gay abandon, continues to launch new attacks, this time targeting the sustainability of the culture palm oil. They argue, more insidiously, that the oil palm plantations have led to the destruction of forests and, consequently, have deprived orang utans in their natural habitat. Interesting. Perhaps even persuasive. Otherwise, for the facts!

The durability of the industry Malaysian palm oil is clear, and it is clear that the culture of Malaysian palm oil is superior to any large-scale agriculture in the tropics or in temperate countries in terms of sustainability parameters. The plantation industry is professionally managed, with great of them such as IOI Corporation, Golden Hope, PPB Group and KL Kepong, operating as publicly traded companies in Malaysia which governance Business and corporate responsibility are much more convenient than farming in other parts of the world. Oil palm Truth Foundation (Www.palmoiltruthfoundation.com) sought to correct the misconception that palm oil contributes to deforestation and enlighten the world because the Malaysian Palm Oil industry has always adopted a culture of sustainable best practices, including conservation and replanting. COPD, in fact, has set up A U.S. $ 5 million Conservation Fund to help conserve wildlife.

But Jacobson understands the phenomenon Lembu and knows that the herd instinct takes notes. And you enough, NGOs and other organizations have taken the bait and, like the proverbial Lembu have expected, blindly followed the herd.

Firstly, the BBC sent a camera crew to film the so-called deforestation habitat loss and the Orang Utans. Second, NGOs have added their voices to the chorus of calls irrational for consumers to avoid palm oil products as they would come unsustainable sources. Friends of the Earth, a British NGO, says that "the industry of palm oil is now considered by scientists as the greatest threat to orang-utan! Scientists? What are the scientists? The pseudo-scientific probe verbose "Center for Science in the interest public? It was almost funny to watch documentary after documentary warning about the dangers of palm oil because of damage caused by Orang Utan humble oil habitat. Hilarious because nothing could be further from the truth, at least as far as Malaysia is concerned!

policies and laws on environmental protection in Malaysia are in place and strictly enforced by the Ministry of Environment. Species threatened with extinction including Orang Utans, needing protection are given priority in conservation programs put in place strong. Sabah, with a growing oil industry Palm and one of the largest states in Malaysia has developed a master list of protected areas on the basis of guidelines of the International Union for Nature (IUCN). In fact, 21.8% of Sabah is now protected, more than double the 10% recommended by the IUCN. It is also interesting to note that Malaysian palm oil industry is the main driver of the Round Table for Sustainable Palm Oil to encourage best practices and minimize any negative impact on the environment by industry even before the latest shenanigans initiated by CSPI started.

Almost any expansion of oil palm in Malaysia is sued by the transformation of existing rubber plantations, cocoa and coconut or logged forest areas have been used for agriculture. Furthermore, of the total area of 30.2 million hectares, only 6 million hectares have been designated for agriculture under the Third Malaysia Agricultural Plan. culture of oil palm is well within the area zoned for agriculture. Ironically, the area still under forest cover remains over 60%, certainly much higher than that of developed nations from which All this hubbub over orangutan habitats are originating.

Recently, the European Free Alliance MEP, accompanied by a group member known as The Greens in the European Parliament (together they form the fourth group in the European Parliament) lent their voice is not negligible the question. Lobbying the European Parliament's Industry, Technology, Research and Energy, which is responsible for proposing policies Energy with an objective of the EU have agreed to renewable energy biomass 25% by 2020, this group managed to get the energy committee include an amendment to "prohibit the use of palm oil to power our cars" due to "lack of environmental standards and safeguards" leading to "an increase in tropical deforestation," while "to failure to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases significantly "! Couching their proposal in euphemistic language, which really takes the cake, the grouping has to justify their proposal on the basis that the emergence of a European biofuels sector offers opportunities to transfer biofuel technology to developing countries crippled by rising oil prices! This last statement gives a clue to the real agenda and intentions of the group. The proposal aims to protect their territory, to protect the European biofuel sector! Here for all the WTO rules against protectionism.

It is time the world wakes up to such insidious and deceptive campaigns and can to be realized when the world develops discernment see through the veil and stop being Lembus. It may be cons-intuitive but the herd instinct can be overcome through education and clear brand and communication programs. Programs that ultimately expose the lies and half-truths that seem to be bent and almost exclusive jurisdiction of CSPI and others of their kind.

About the Author

Palm Oil Truth Foundation (TRUTH Foundation) is an international non-governmental and not-for-profit organisation, without strings to the world of commerce and power. We are a people organisation, organised for the people and founded upon the principles of integrity and responsibility as a global citizen with the sole purpose of representing TRUTH to the global community about health, environmental and economic benefits of palm oil.

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