14/11/2008 (ICTSD) - The first shipment of ‘sustainable’ palm oil left Malaysia for the Netherlands this week, but some conservationists argue that the system used to certify the oil is not strong enough to prevent environmental damage.

Four years ago, a coalition of industry groups and the environmental NGO WWF set up the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, or RSPO. The purpose of the initiative was to develop a certification system to counter growing criticism that palm oil production destroys wildlife habitat, causes widespread forest loss and releases huge quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

More than 28 million tonnes of palm oil are produced around the world each year. The oil is found in a variety of foods, including margarine, cooking oil, potato chips, cakes, and cookies. It is also an ingredient in many cosmetics, soaps, shampoos and detergents. Recently, palm oil has also begun to be used as a biofuel.

Over the past two decades, areas undergoing palm oil cultivation have grown by about 43 percent, according to RSPO – mostly in Malaysia and Indonesia, where deforestation pressures are already high.

RSPO says that its certification system can help ensure that such production is carried out

“The upcoming arrival of this first batch of oil is a small but significant step towards having all the world’s palm oil produced in a socially and environmentally sustainable way,” said Jan Kees Vis, President of the RSPO, Reuters reported.

Some environmentalists agree.

“The arrival of RSPO certified palm oil in Europe is an important milestone,” Rodney Taylor of WWF said. “With the RSPO’s certification system up and running, companies now have the means to buy responsibly.”

Several European companies, including Unilever, Sainsbury’s and Albert Heijn, have already promised to buy RSPO-certified palm oil, WWF said in a press release.

But not everyone believes that the certification system will have a significant effect on the ground. Environmental NGO Greenpeace released a report last week that criticised the scheme as hypocritical and called on the palm oil industry to take stronger action.

“Many RSPO members are taking no steps to avoid the worst practices associated with the industry, such as large-scale forest clearance and taking land from local people without their consent,” Greenpeace said. “On top of this, the RSPO actually risks creating the illusion of sustainable palm oil, justifying the expansion of the palm oil industry.”

“The RSPO…must support a moratorium on deforestation and pressure the Indonesian government to take urgent action,” Bustar Maitar of Greenpeace said. “Furthermore, the RSPO standards must be tightened to ensure that members stop deforestation and peatland clearance in all of their operations.”