“Half of the tropical plywood used in Japan comes from the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo, which has one of the highest rates of deforestation in…
South China Morning Post: Palm Oil Is Cheap, But It’s Also An Eco-Disaster
“The self-regulatory group charged with balancing the successes of the palm oil industry against its labour and environmental abuses has a big year ahead of it, as it tries to bolster its guiding…
Jakarta Globe: RSPO Investigating Reports of Ongoing Labor Abuse at Indofood Plantations
“The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, or RSPO, announced last week that its complaints panel is currently investigating reports of ongoing worker exploitation at plantations belonging to Indonesian food giant…
Mongabay: Labor abuses persist in RSPO-certified palm plantations, report finds
“Bambang’s story highlights a different issue: the miserable working conditions at many of Indonesia’s palm plantations. These include excessive working hours, occupational health and safety hazards, and, more seriously, child…
Jakarta Globe: Labor Abuses Still Exist at Indofood Plantations: Report
“Environmental organization Rainforest Action Network, or RAN, last week called for reforms at Indonesian food giant Indofood, as a new report details ongoing worker exploitation, poverty-level wages and hazardous work conditions…
Voice of America: Report: Ongoing Labor Abuse Found in Pepsi’s Indonesian Palm Oil Plantations
“Workers at several Indonesian palm oil plantations that supply Pepsi and Nestle suffer from a variety of labor abuses, including lower-than-minimum wages, child labor, exposure to pesticides, and union busting,…
Devex: Opinion: A make or break moment for the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
“The palm oil industry has become notorious for its negative impacts on tropical rainforests, indigenous peoples, local communities, workers, and the global climate. For over a decade, global brands and…
Vice: Keeping the World’s Forests Sustainable Would Cost $160 Billion
“The Rainforest Action Network takes a targeted, campaign-focused approach to forest protection, with an emphasis on climate justice, biodiversity, and human rights through the lens of corporate accountability. Campaigns against mass paper production, palm…
The Guardian: ‘Don’t just rely on NGOs’: finding solutions to deforestation
““There isn’t enough action happening now to end deforestation. Companies must rectify their business practices before they expand into new territories, because that old model of industrial plantation isn’t delivering…
The Guardian: ‘The last place on Earth’: how Sumatra’s rainforest is being cleared for palm oil
“A palm oil company is continuing to clear forest in a fast-diminishing elephant habitat in Indonesia’s Leuser ecosystem despite being the subject of two reports into illegal deforestation, according to…