Indonesian palm oil giant Musim Mas and major global brands join leading initiative to reform palm oil industry
Amidst an environmental and human health crisis resulting from the forest fires in Indonesia, key players have gathered in Kuala Lumpur for the annual meeting of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Marking the occasion, the Palm Oil Innovation Group (POIG), an initiative to reform the palm oil industry, is announcing new POIG members that are committing to drive much-needed transformation in the palm oil sector.
Leading brands like Ferrero, Danone, Stephenson and Boulder Brands and Indonesian palm oil giant Musim Mas Group, have recently joined innovative growers Agropalma and DAABON, along with international NGOs including Greenpeace, WWF, Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and Forest Peoples Programme (FPP), to build upon the RSPO standards and commitments. These new members seek to establish new business practices in the palm oil industry that end deforestation, the burning and development of peatlands and gross labor and human rights violations.
Musim Mas is the first major Southeast Asian palm oil company to join POIG; with over 200,000 hectares of plantations and a primary role in global palm oil trade, it is well placed to create needed change in the palm oil supply chain. Musim Mas is committing to implement the POIG charter across its entire supply chain, and will test new innovations and advocate for these improvements to become business norms in palm oil production.
“The Palm Oil Innovation Group welcomes the commitment by Musim Mas, Ferrero, Danone, Stephenson and Boulder Brands to innovate and join the ranks of the most responsible companies in the palm oil supply chain,” says Matthias Diemer, the co-chair of the Palm Oil Innovation Group (POIG).
At a time of increased global pressure to improve the palm oil industry and during deliberations on the adoption of the RSPO’s voluntary scheme, RSPO Next, POIG is growing both membership and its capacity to address key issues in the palm oil sector. POIG remains the only initiative that is able to deliver independently verified and truly responsible palm oil, produced by companies whose practices go beyond the requirements of the RSPO.
The Palm Oil Innovation Group (POIG) is a collective of progressive palm oil companies and brands together with environmental and social NGOs that are working to push the boundaries of current requirements of the RSPO. POIG aims to support the RSPO through building on RSPO standards and commitments by both demonstrating innovation to implement RSPO existing standards as well as additional critical issues. www.poig.org
To download the statement, click here.