Friends of the Earth: FAQs: I've heard that products containing palm oil are seriously damaging rainforests. How can I avoid such products?

I've heard that products containing palm oil are seriously damaging rainforests. How can I avoid such products?

Palm oil is found in about one in ten of the goods we buy from supermarkets. This includes:

Soap
Chocolate
Toothpaste
Biscuits
Cosmetics
Muesli

Rainforest in your shopping basket

Palm oil plantations are often grown on land that was once rainforest.

In Indonesia, the huge demand for palm oil is putting pressure on endangered species like:

Tigers
Elephants
Orang-utans

Laws meant to protect rainforest are often too weak to withstand the demands of palm oil companies for new plantations.

As plantations expand, local people are being displaced from their community forest land. Many communities battle for years for the return of just a small plot.

Land and water supplies can become degraded and polluted as palm oil production is intensive and relies on pesticides.

Even the greenest consumer can't avoid products with palm oil in them. This is because palm oil is often listed as vegetable oil on product labels.

A boycott would be impossible and perhaps irresponsible - it wouldn't help communities who are already struggling to survive on less than a living wage.

British businesses are involved at every level of the supply chain, from investor to retailer.

But 87% of UK companies don't know where their palm oil comes from.

Friends of the Earth thinks they could do a lot more to source and develop sustainable palm oil production.

We need new rules for big business to be accountable for their social and environmental impact.

Ethical shopping alone won't change the behaviour of the palm oil industries. New rules are needed to hold companies accountable for the damage they do.

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Last modified
Content: Apr 2005