Palm | Kelapa Sawit

The UK government has launched a research project into the use of palm oil. The project will look at how much palm oil is used in the UK and what portion is sustainably sourced. The project will also look at the palm oil's connection with the destruction of natural forests in Indonesia.

In an unrelated development, the British banking giant HSBC has announced that it has sold off its shares in the Indonesian palm oil producer Sinar Mas. Several reports by Greenpeace have accused Sinar Mas of illegal forest clearing.

The palm oil plantation industry is under attack for alleged unsustainable practices that are contributing to massive deforestation in South-east Asia.