1. Pablo Laris April 26th 2017 ATOC 4800 Final Presentation
Land use change and certification Programs: The RSPO certification Program
Pablo Laris
April 26th 2017
ATOC 4800 Final Presentation

2. Outline Background: Palm Oil Industry. Why do we care? What is RSPO?
Voluntary Certification Programs: Function, Operation, Producers, Consumers.
Limitations
Policy
Discussion

3. Palm Oil Industry
Palm oil is found in one of ten products. Used for soaps, cosmetics, detergents, biofuels….
Global demand is increasing rapidly
Globally we produced 59.6 million tonnes per year. Two countries produced the majority of palm oil (Indonesia and Malaysia).
Out of 14.2 million ha of palm oil plantations, only 2.53 million are certfied by the RSPO.
Benefits: Alleviate poverty, very productive, efficient and cheap crop, versatile and unique, nutritional values

5. Why do we care ? Deforestation !
Huge areas of forest are cleared for palm oil plantations, releasing carbon into the atmosphere to drive global warming while shrinking habitats for a lot of endangered species (e.g Orangutan)
Indonesia forests store even more carbon per hectare than the Brazilian Amazon thanks to their carbon rich soil. (Magazine: Union of Concerned Scientists).
In Malaysia , the carbon stock of tropical forests can range up to 99 million kg of carbon per square mile.
Last point: That is equivalent to the emissions from driving an average car from NY to San Francisco and back 76 times. !!!!!!!!

7. What is the RSPO? Mission & Vision:
Advance the production, procurement, finance and use of sustainable palm oil products
Develop, implement, verify, assure and periodically review credible global standards for the entire supply chain of sustainable palm oil.
Monitor and evaluate the economic, environmental, and social impacts of the uptake of sustainable palm oil in the market.
Engage and commit all stakeholders throughout the supply chain, including governments and consumers.
Palm oil is one of the few vegetable oils in the market with a crop-specific sustainable certification standard, the RSPO.
The RSPO brings together stakeholders, including NGOs and social groups along the process value chain of palm oil production to promote the growth and use of sustainable practices.
RSPO a nonprofit industry-led trade organization whose stated mission is to “provide RSPO-certified palm oil to the market in a clear and transparent manner” and to “promote the growth and use of sustainable palm oil”.

8. Facts: In 2017 we had a certified production area of 2
Facts: In 2017 we had a certified production area of 2.53 million ha of which Indonesia 50%, Malaysia 41%, Papua New Guinea 5.6%, other 4.2%

10. Voluntary Certification Programs
What is the function of a certification program?
- To achieve environmental or social sustainability objectives

11. Voluntary Certification Programs
2. How do certification programs operate?
- An agreed set of standards, comprised of “principles and criteria”
- A certification body- e.g NGO, or roundtable
- Voluntary participation
- Regular, independent (third party) audits
- The rights to use the program label

12. Voluntary Certification Programs
3. Why do producers become certified?
- Provides visibility to those operating with best practices
Others are incentives to improve their practices
In any case they can be benefited in different ways:
To receive price premiums
To access new markets
To remain competitive
To demonstrate sustainability ethics
To improve on farm efficiency
To reduce deforestation

13. Voluntary Certification Programs
4. Why do consumers buy certified products?
The label conveys information to consumers about how that product was produced
Consumers are then empowered to make smarter decisions and choose more sustainably-produced alternatives

14. Problems/Limitations
What are the problems with certification programs as a mechanism for reducing environmental and social impacts of commodity agriculture?
Consumer confusion
Price premiums (Unwillingness to pay)
Access for smallholders (barriers to entry)
Labeling good practice; or incentivizing improvement
Doesn't’t directly address the volume of demand
Poor monitoring and enforcing
Who sets the standards?
Potential for green washing
Last point: Although some conservation policies have been put in place to reduce deforestation, none have been effective at working with the RSPO to follow and comply with al the criteria set by this entity.

15. Policy
No existing working policy to work along certification programs and to trace what happens in the supply chain.
Many companies do not follow existing conservation policies and do not meet the standards.
We need the certification programs to ensure standards and criteria are met.
Current policies are for land use not for sustainability in the entire supply chain

16. Discussion
Discussion: Do you believe that certifications such as the RSPO are needed to achieve sustainability in the production of different commodities such as Palm oil? Is this sufficient? What else can it be done? Who needs to be involved? How can certification programs influence policy?
Group 1: Some actors claim that the RSPO has been effective at enhancing sustainability. What are some examples or evidence that support this claim?
Group 2: Some actors have critiqued the RSPO as being ineffective. What is the basis of some if these critiques?
Voluntary certification design influences producer participation, stakeholder credibility, and environmental sustainability in commodity agriculture sectors in tropical landscapes.
Traceability is huge !!!!!

17. So…...
Key Messages:
Certification programs are characterized by a set of actions and institutions
There is significant variation in how well the theory of certification has translated into practice, in different countries and for different commodities
Although certification programs are the first step towards sustainability in the supply chain for every commodity, we have to analyze every situation differently since not all solutions apply to all commodities nor all countries.
I personally believe that certification programs are the first step towards achieving 100% sustainability in the production of commodities. I believe there has to be a collaborative effort between private sector, government entities, NGOs and local producers to achieve a fair and sustainable supply chain system where everybody wins.
I strongly believe that these certification programs can influence the policy making process and help have more policies in place that help reduce deforestation.