Malaysia pushes palm certification

More than 96pc of palm oil estates and 88.5pc of mills in Malaysia have obtained the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification as of 30 June.

Over 4.06mn hectares of land and 400 palm oil mills have been certified, up from 2.97mn ha and 340 mills at the turn of the year.

But private smallholder participation remains low at around 25pc, or 244ha, of land as of 31 May, prompting an extension of the mandatory enforcement period by six months to 30 June 2020.

Any outstanding palm estate or mill operators who has not begun the MSPO certification process by 1 January 2021 will be issued a warning letter. Legal action will follow should they still be non-compliant as of 1 July 2021, which could eventually result in them having their licences suspended or terminated.

Malaysia is pushing the MSPO to improve sustainability practices and heading off EU complaints over deforestation as a result of palm cultivation.

The EU is phasing out palm from biodiesel by 2030, though it faces challenges from Indonesia which complained to the World Trade Organization (WTO) over the move.

Malaysia has not lodged a complaint with the WTO but supported Indonesia's claim while saying that the MSPO goes a long way in addressing many of the EU's issues.

By Amandeep Parmar