News
Coconut Industry Executive Warns of Dangers of Economic Reliance on a Single Commodity
The Secretary-General of the Indonesian Association of Coconut Processing Industry (HIPKI) Donatus Gede Sabon is warning of the dangers and vulnerability of an economy that is heavily relying on a single commodity, in this case, palm oil.
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The Role of the Private Sector In Helping Smallholders Get Certified
The Indonesian government is also currently encouraging its own palm oil sustainability scheme, the Indonesia Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) to assure the sustainability of the palm oil industry. However, most smallholders still face many obstacles, administrative and or financial, in obtaining certification.
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Watchdog: Big Companies Must Ensure Sustainability of Their Palm Oil Supply
Eye on the Forest said that it found Indonesia’s top four palm oil producers, better known as the “Big 4” – GAR, Musim Mas, RGE, and Wilmar – had purchased, often repeatedly, from mills that have been flagged as having often dealt in illegal palm oil
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Absence of Universally-Accepted Definition Behind Debate on Deforestation Rate
The definition of what a forest entails can substantially impact the estimate of deforestation and forest destruction as well as in estimating the real culprit behind deforestation.
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APKASINDO Seeks Way to Protect Smallholders from Pressure of Low Prices
“farmers should be able to pocket RP 1,300-Rp 1,500 per kilogram of fresh fruit bunch but what is happening on the field is that prices could reach Rp 600 per kilogram,” APKASINDO Deputy Secretary-General Rino Afrino told The Palm Scribe.
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Farmer Union Wants Government to Set Bottom Palm Oil Purchase Prices
Indonesian Palm Oil Farmer Union (SPKS) Chairman Mansuetus Darto on Tuesday (24/7) called on the government to set a bottom price for the purchase of oil palm fresh fruit bunch (FFB) by mills at Rp1,500 per kilogram to assure the survival of oil palm farmers and their family.
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What Indonesian newspapers are reporting about the industry
35 hotspots emerge in Central Kalimantan in two days
Kompas, 14 August 2018 At least 35 hotspots were detected in Central Kalimantan in two days. Palangkaraya Meteorological, Climatological, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) meteorologist Roland Binery said on Monday (August 13) that the 35 hotspots are scattered in nine...
Palm oil companies convert 100% of their DHE to Rupiah
Investor Daily, 14 August 2018 National palm oil companies claimed that all of their foreign exchange generated from exports (DHE) have been converted to Rupiah. Indonesian Palm Oil Producers Association (Gapki) Secretary General Togar Sitanggang said yesterday...
Sawit Watch: Indonesia Has More than 21 Million Hectares of Oil Palm Plantations
While the Indonesian government says the country’s oil palm plantations cover some 14 million hectares, a study conducted by palm oil industry watchdog Sawit Watch puts the figure much higher, at more than million hectares.
Sustainability concerns cloud B30 plan
Press Release
Ready for replanting, KUD Sawit Subur signed the MOU with BRI, BPDPKS and Asian Agri
Musi Banyuasin, 16 October 2017 – Asian Agri, one of the leading private companies in Indonesia, signed an MoU with cooperative KUD Sawit Subur, bank BRI and government body BPDPKS (Indonesian Oil Palm Estate Fund Agency) for a smallholder oil palm replanting program...
SSMS strengthens sustainability commitment to realize palm oil’s full potential
Pangkalan Bun, 8 November 2017 – PT Sawit Sumbermas Sarana Tbk. (SSMS) has published a new Sustainability Policy that will be followed by a Sustainability Road Map by the end of December 2017, committing the company to a more specific set of time-bound commitments....
PROFILE
Fries: Palm Oil Is Here To Stay, And Boosting Yields Is Key To Rein In Deforestation
“I think that so much of this industry is already in place and there is no turning back, really. The question is how much more, how further will it go,” Fries said.
Darto: High Time for Full Attention to be Given to Indonesia Palm oil Smallholders
Chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Farmer Union (SPKS), Mansuetus Darto Wojtyla Alsy Hanu, strongly believes that to push Indonesian palm oil smallholders to adopt sustainable agricultural practices, the government needed to provide appropriate incentives.
SPECIAL REPORTS
Papuans want palm oil plantations
That one’s life can turn like a wheel, with its ups and downs, is something that Samuel Maikea and his wife Rachel Derione can vouch for. This native Papuan couple from the Iwaro Tribe have now settled in Puragi village, in the South Sorong district of West Papua....
Orchid conservation in palm oil
Orchids are well known as elegant flowers across the world and is widely prized. There are hundreds of varieties of orchids, including many that only can be found in the wild and are rare. But orchids, especially the wild varieties, are victims of their own...
OPINION
Palm Oil Ban by Supermarket Iceland’s brands – laudable or misguided effort?
UK supermarket chain Iceland has announced it will ban the use of palm oil in all its brands. Is this a laudable or misguided effort in making the industry sustainable?
The Future of Peatland in Indonesia
Out of an estimated 14.9 million hectares of peatland in Indonesia, only around 6.7 million hectares remain undeveloped and in forests, and a peat expert is calling on the government to maintain these at their current state at all costs.
VIDEOS
EVENTS
RENEWABLE ENERGY DIRECTIVE II SEMINAR
This conference will discuss EU palm oil import policy and what it will affect Indonesia palm oil industry
14TH INDONESIA PALM OIL CONFERENCE
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS EXPO
9 – 11 Oktober 2018
This conference is the only specialized Palm Oil event in Asia that brings together an international congregation of both upstream and downstream palm oil companies and also its supporting industries gathered in the capital city of North Sumatera, Medan to showcase the latest developments in the palm oil industry.