Credit: Borneo Orangutan Survival Organisation
There is something enchanting about a rainforest landscape. Lush green foliage; sunlight filtering through the canopy; the sounds of insects, birds and other mammals. To me, this is paradise.
I have been fortunate enough to spend time in the world's largest rainforest, the Amazon, where you can literally feel the pulse of life from within.
Then there is the altogether different landscape; burnt land, hot and smoky. As the population increases, farmers, desperate to grow crops, raise cattle and make a living, are reducing the land to black embers.
Many rainforests are experiencing this fate, most notably in Indonesia, which contains the world's third-largest area of rainforest. It is here that degradation and deforestation is occurring at a staggering rate, with approximately 300 football field's worth cleared every hour through logging to produce palm oil.
Initially, the ancient trees that form the canopy are logged and then deliberately lit fires are used to clear the remaining rainforest.
The forest degradation and fires now account for a massive chunk of carbon dioxide emissions, earning Indonesia a top ranking among the worst carbon emitters worldwide, according to the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change.
The cost of palm oil is borne by local Indonesian communities who report to large-scale companies involved in illegal logging and plantations. These corporations come in and clear their customary lands without prior consultation.
Palm oil is often used as a cheap substitute for vegetable oil in biscuits, confectionary, chips, and shampoo - and is in fact found in one in ten of the products on supermarket shelves. Since it is regularly labelled as vegetable oil, the consumer is often unaware.
Consumer pressure can change the situation. Cadburys announced it would be substituting cocoa butter for palm oil in their family blocks of chocolate. Many consumers voiced their concerns to Cadbury and the company recently revoked the decision.
To meet the growing world demand for palm oil, fertilisers and pesticides are frequently sprayed. These often wash into rivers and streams, making the water unsafe to drink. In addition, there have been allegations of human rights abuse on the plantations, with many workers prevented from forming unions.
I agree about palm oil being
I agree about palm oil being detrimential to the downfall of the orangutans, but as for giving Cadbury "good on you" stars, for using cocoa butter in their chocolates, that is a load of crap. they always used cocoa butter and thought they could make a cheap new profit by switching to palm oil and making the bars smaller and trying to cheat by putting the bars into "cardboard" boxes (another way of killing the planet by using too much paper) Well the backlash was immediate. people saw through the scam, the chocolate tasted terrible- and switched to other brands. Well "good old Cadbury" has a smack on the bum and is going back to a quality product. we'll wait and see on that one..
perhaps we should send the executives of Cadbury up to Borneo to work in the Orangutan orphan's centre for a bit - perhaps that will change their "cheap money hungry ways"
Palm Oil and the Orangutans
Cadbury UK havn't even agreed to stop using Palm Oil as people in the UK don't complain loudly enough like the Aussies did.