Indonesian Palm Oil Giant partially cleared on green claim

A recent audit on PT SMART Tbk, revealed the Indonesian palm oil gian had not destroyed primary forest but had planted on carbon-rich deep peatlands. This partially clears the company of accusations by Greenpeace. SMART was reported to have said that the independent report showed a campaign by Greenpeace was exaggerated or wrong, but the audit found that the planting on deep peatlands, which trap greenhouse gases, contravenes Indonesian and SMART’s own regulations. Read more

Palm oil groups form coalition against critics

Malaysian and Indonesian palm oil producer formed a coalition in May in a bid to to counter campaigns blaming the industry for rapid deforestation in the region. The Indonesia-Malaysia Palm Oil Group comprises six organisations from the two countries, which account for 85 percent of global production. Read more