MPOB: EU’s interpretation of ‘sustainable’ akin to crop apartheid

KUALA LUMPUR: The interpretation of the word “sustainable” should not be dictated by the European Union (EU) to the detriment of developing economies, said Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) chairman Datuk Seri Ahmad Hamzah.

In an interview with NST Business, he said EU’s interpretation that confined “sustainable” to rainforest conservation was akin to crop apartheid.

Last week, European lawmakers approved draft measures to ban palm biodiesel from January 2021.

Malaysia is the world’s secondbiggest palm oil producer after Indonesia, and the two countries account for more than 85 per cent of global output.

Last year, Malaysia earned RM75 billion in palm oil exports, with the EU being its secondbiggest market.

“The EU Parliament’s plan to allow other vegetable oils, such as rapeseed, sunflower and soyabean, to continue operating under its Renewable Energy Directive while banning palm oil is crop apartheid.

“The EU’s interpretation of the word ‘sustainable’ is lopsided. It neglects poverty alleviation and social advancement among developing nations and, therefore, contradicts the universal ly accepted United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” said Ahmad.

The SDGs, which Malaysia subscribes to, is premised on balanced needs of people, profits and planet.

The government launched the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification in 2016.

But many Western activists and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) rejected it.

“They repeatedly criticised the MSPO, saying it is of a ‘lower’ standard than RSPO. They also questioned whether MSPO is internationally accepted when it is obvious their voice do not represent elected leaders of developing economies,” said Ahmad.

Compared with other certifications initiated by developed nations, the MSPO seeks to restore the balance of social and economic dimensions in oil palm cultivation to be on par with that of environmental conservation.

“Only when the three dimensions of sustainability are proportionately accounted for would the generally accepted definition of ‘sustainable’ be achieved.”

Meanwhile, an oil palm planter from Kanowit rebuted allegations that Sarawak suffered from wanton deforestation and illegal land grab.

“What deforestation? What is the EU talking about?

“We are planting oil palm on native customary rights land that has been passed down from generation to generation from our ancestors.

“We are cultivating on land that belongs to us,” said Enyang Menchol. Ooi Tee Ching