The Jakarta Post, 20 July 2018
Palm oil sourced from illegally cleared rainforest areas in Indonesia has flowed through traders to major consumer goods brands despite widespread commitments to cease purchases of nonsustainable oil, a new report says. Palm oil companies Royal Golden Eagle (RGE), Wilmar, Musim Mas Group and Golden Agri-Resources sold oil from 21 tainted mills to more than a dozen global brands including Nestle and Unilever, according to the report by Eyes on the Forest (EoF), a coalition of environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Indonesia. Nestle said in an emailed response it was committed to tackling deforestation. A company spokeswoman said the firm was working with partners to transform the palm oil industry further down the supply chain. Unilever said by email it publicly disclosed suppliers and mill details and was committed to increasing traceability in the palm oil supply chain and to working with its suppliers and partners to resolve issues. Sinar Mas Agribusiness and Food, a subsidiary of Golden Agri, Downstream Sustainability Daniel A. Prakarsa said the company considered 39% of its output to be fully traceable, and was targeting full traceability from the 427 mills of its suppliers by 2020. The policy is to help suppliers to comply. Not just saying this is the standards, they must comply, otherwise the company will stop buying, he said.