Asian Agri stops using ‘illegal’ oil palm fruits

JAKARTA. Asian Agri, one of Indonesia’s major crude palm oil (CPO) producers, has promised it will stop receiving a supply of freshly harvested fruits from “illegal” oil palm plantations in line with its commitment to become a truly sustainable and environmentally friendly CPO producer.

The company announced that beginning Friday, it would implement a policy that requires all suppliers of its oil palm fruits including independent farmers, (not including its plasma farmers) and other third-party oil palm fruit suppliers to include legal documents of their freshly harvested fruits.

The policy is part of the company’s effort to prevent encroachment of natural and protected forests, stop illegal oil palm plantations and build a sustainable supply chain.

Foreign buyers especially in Europe will only buy certified CPO to ensure that all CPO products they import are sourced from plantations that are based on sustainable concepts. The certification is given to a company that can, among others, prove that they are not operating in forest conservation areas and causing deforestation.