Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
Founded at the initiative of WWF in 2004 Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil ( Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, RSPO ) tries as the central organization to promote sustainable farming practices for palm oil and so to limit the environmental damage. Members of the Round Table, in addition to environmental groups and other NGOs, especially companies and institutions in the value chain of palm oil, including plantation companies, traders and industrial users of palm oil, but also investors and banks.
- 6.1 No sustainable farming possible
- 6.2 Economic interests are on environmental and social
- 6.3 smallholders not sufficiently involved
History
In 2001, the WWF began to explore the possibility of a round table. Result was an informal cooperation with some producers and trading companies in 2002. In the first meeting of these organizations prepared the establishment of the RSPO. The founding meeting was held in Malaysia in August 2003 with the participation of 200 delegates from 16 countries instead. The participants expressed their intention to support the round table. On 8 April 2004, the RSPO was formally established as an association.
In November 2007, the RSPO principles and criteria were for the sustainable production of palm oil in power. The end of 2008 the first certified palm oil market was available.
Organization
The RSPO is an association under Swiss law with headquarters in Zurich. Ordinary Full Members must be active with respect to the palm oil supply chain and to contribute actively to the work of the Round Table. Other interested stakeholders may be associate members. The RSPO is, at least numerically, dominated by the economy. In October 2009, the RSPO had 312 full members, of which the vast majority ( Oct. 2009: 206) in the areas of traditional cultivation, processing and trade. Approximately 6.7% presented environmental and development organizations. There were also organizations from other sectors of the economy, such as banks and investors.
In a General Assembly are full members elect the board. Associate members have a participation - but no right to vote. The Executive Board is composed by a quota system, non-governmental organizations provide after four of the 16 board members.
The Secretary-General appointed by the Board and staff members are responsible for the operational business of the association. The office of the Association is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and is supported by an office in Indonesia. The Board may establish working groups. The RSPO has three working groups, namely on the topics of standards and certification, trade and traceability as well as public relations.
Standards
RSPO Principles and Criteria
The RSPO (, abbreviated P & C Sheet Principles and Criteria) defines a set of principles and criteria in their application of the claim of sustainable palm oil production is expected to be met.
The catalog includes eight principles, each with one to eleven criteria. Among the criteria indicators and guidelines are given, by which compliance with the criteria should be verifiable. The eight principles are:
Indicators and guidelines contain mainly general, qualitative requirements for plans, documentation and evidence. The interpretation and application of these generic principles and criteria is substantiated by the RSPO for the individual producing countries in national guidelines.
RSPO -RED requirements
The RSPO -RED requirements for palm oil producers, processors and the supply chain complement the principles and criteria to a set of requirements, the compliance with the sustainability requirements of the Directive 2009/28/EC ( Renewable Energy Directive, Eng Renewable Energies Directive -. RED) intended to ensure. Only areas that have already been used in January 2008 for the production of palm oil, can meet these requirements. If it was peat or wetlands, they may not have been drained since 2008. Certified companies must demonstrate the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from April 2013. Small farmers' cooperatives are not currently certified by RSPO -RED. Along the supply chain as a control method only segregation or mass balance allowed.
The European Commission has decided that the RSPO -RED system meets sustainability criteria for biofuels Renewable Energy Directive.
Certification and product labeling
A certification system to ensure compliance with the principles and criteria. Producers are back tested at the RSPO certification that palm oil was produced according to these criteria. The RSPO certification of retailers and other companies in the supply chain to ensure that information on the use of certified palm oil is correct. The RSPO certification of the supply chain and this allows examining various types of information:
The test is performed by a number of independent certifier, for example, from German-speaking TÜV Nord or agroVet Austria.
Production of palm oil
RSPO - certified palm oil available on the market since September 2008. At this time had RSPO members accounted for 35 % of world palm oil production. However, only a small proportion of the total production of RSPO members are actually certified. Production and sales of palm oil are significantly below the initial expectations. For the period until the end of 2008, the RSPO was expecting a production of 1.5 million tonnes of certified palm oil and for the future significant increases in production. In contrast, reached the total production since market entry until March 2010, the mark of 1.8 million tonnes and the monthly production was 128,000 t. Not in all months, the total production was discontinued. The demand was the start of the RSPO certification too low. The world's biggest consumer, China and India, showed little interest in sustainably produced palm oil. The price for RSPO - certified palm oil was approximately 8 % -15 % higher than the non -certified. The majority of the oil was sold on the certificate trading system Book and Claim.
Criticism
The RSPO is been criticized that sustainability objectives and social objectives are not reached by the certification. Many environmental organizations such as Greenpeace and Rainforest Rescue throw the RSPO greenwash ago. In a joint statement criticizing 256 environmental, social and human rights organizations from around the world, the label massive and call it a " misnomer ": The trust of consumers is being abused by companies, by offering products of " clean production " and palm oil from RSPO identify certified as sustainable production, in fact it is not produced in an environmentally friendly and sustainable. In addition, are land grabs, displacement of indigenous peoples and the destruction of primary rainforest on the agenda as the requirements of the RSPO are too weak and had provided no effective sanctions. In addition, the organizations point out that huge plantations of monocultures of oil palm trees would never be sustainable. The plantations lead to deforestation and, consequently, to the loss of biodiversity, flooding, worse droughts, soil erosion, water pollution and the advent of pests due to breakdown of the ecological balance and changes in the food chains. In addition, have the clearing of rainforests and draining of peatlands, especially in Southeast Asia have serious consequences for the global climate, as huge amounts of carbon dioxide are released.
The documentary The Pact with the Panda, which ran on ARD in June 2011, shows effects of the RSPO and attacks the criticisms described here. Equally critical, the report addresses " chocolate, shampoo, sunscreen - How everyday products destroy the rainforest " ZDF with this issue. The Environmental Association WWF, initiator of the RSPO, sees its standards and labeling is not as eco-labeled goods, it only defines minimum standards.
No sustainable farming possible
First, a " sustainable " cultivation of palm oil in an environmentally sound manner is hardly possible. The RSPO criteria are for the preservation of forest areas with " high conservation value ", other forest areas can be converted into palm oil plantations. In practice, this leads to fragmented, small protected forest areas, which have a much lower biodiversity, for example, of bird species.
The so-called by the industry named as " environmentally friendly " " selective logging " provides (eg by cable ) to remove only the desired timber from the rainforest. But even then, a wide swath of surrounding trees will be affected; As a result, it comes to erosion. In addition, many of the desired tree species have a particularly long period of growth and are only sporadically disseminated. It means to clear to jeopardize their long-term species conservation. This is in direct contradiction to one of the official main objectives of the RSPO to limit the environmental damage.
Economic interests are on environmental and social
Since the body is composed of 303 members, of whom 282 business enterprises provide the lion's share, the remaining 21 environmental and social organizations that probably comes to barely a supporting role. The RSPO is therefore primarily a body to enforce the interests of industry. In addition, the RSPO can be country-specific policy issues such as the protection of indigenous peoples into account. Again, this is in direct contradiction to one of the official main objectives of the RSPO to minimize social contrasts for the benefit of the population.
Small farmers do not sufficiently involved
Small farmers were not involved according to their share of palm oil production in the standard-setting process. Compliance with RSPO criteria is considered to be difficult for small farmers.
The current focus of the RSPO to national criteria can be important regional differences aside, for example with regard to competition and bargaining power of the actors. Significant changes and standardization at the district level are important for improving social conditions, for example, would help to strengthen the rights of small farmers standardized, fair contracts.
The RSPO has established a working group that discusses a better account of small farmers.