Burning Questions – Credibility of sustainable palm oil still illusive

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is one of the world’s most well-known certification schemes. Its environmental and social standards are often ranked highly and yet it continues to face criticism, eroding trust in its brand.

The criticism stems from palm oil’s part in destroying forests and people’s lives where it is grown. RSPO members continue to be exposed for violations of the body’s own standard and this ongoing trend makes the RSPO’s claims of sustainability unreliable.