The single greatest threat to the survival of orang utans is the production of palm oil. On average some 300 football fields of forest are destroyed each hour for palm oil plantations.
It’s high grade land containing ancient native forests that are first logged for profits and then replaced with palm oil. Unfortunately, ‘palm oilers’ (just think of snake oil salesmen) conduct uncontrolled burns that result in the death of hundreds of orang utans.
Large tracts of rainforest in Sumatra and Borneo have disappeared due to this unthinkable and tragic practice. These abhorrent practices are rarely publicised. You don’t see it on the daily news. Very little is written about it in the newspapers. It’s a forgotten part of the world.
So what is palm oil? It’s an edible vegetable oil found in lots of food, cosmetic and household products. It’s also being used as a bio fuel, however, research indicates that it actually increases greenhouse emissions.
The alarming fact is that if we don’t stop the accelerating growth of palm oil plantations, we will see the orang utan extinct within the next 20 years. Your only contact will be with zoo orang utans. Not quite the same as seeing them in the wild.
Check your supermarket product labels. What’s in that product can often be deceiving. What is labeled ‘vegetable oil’ frequently contains palm oil. All products must declare saturated fat content and if you find saturated fat, then the product most likely contains palm oil. If it is Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) then the product is ‘orang utan’ friendly.
Consumer pressure can make a huge difference. Remember what happened to Cadbury products that contained palm oil? They were eventually removed from the shelves.
Let’s also put pressure on the Government to have palm oil compulsorily labeled in Australia. Check out Nick Xenophon's Truth in Labeling website at www.truthinlabelling.com.au.
