Palm oil is the most extensively consumed vegetable oil on the earth, and it may be found in a variety of packaged products offered in supermarkets. While palm oil is the most efficient vegetable oil source, its fast spread threatens some of the planet’s most vital and fragile environments.
Palm oil grows in tropical rainforests, and unregulated clearing for traditional palm oil plantations has resulted in extensive destruction of these valuable and biodiverse forests. Plantations have also been linked to the extinction of endangered animals such as orangutans, tigers, elephants, and rhinos.
We look into some things you need to know about palm oil and how to buy sustainable palm oil.
It’s an edible vegetable oil that comes from the fruit of oil palm trees, the scientific name is Elaeis guineensis. Two types of oil can be produced; crude palm oil comes from squeezing the fleshy fruit, and palm kernel oil which comes from crushing the kernel, or the stone in the middle of the fruit. Oil palm trees are native to Africa but were brought to South-East Asia just over 100 years ago as an ornamental tree crop. Now, Indonesia and Malaysia make up over 85% of global supply but there are 42 other countries that also produce palm oil.
Palm oil is in nearly everything – it’s in close to 50% of the packaged products we find in supermarkets, everything from pizza, doughnuts and chocolate, to deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste and lipstick. It’s also used in animal feed and as a biofuel in many parts of the world (not in the UK though!).
Why is palm oil everywhere?
Palm oil is an extremely versatile oil that has many different properties and functions that makes it so useful and so widely used. It is semi-solid at room temperature so can keep spreads spreadable; it is resistant to oxidation so can give products a longer shelf-life; it’s stable at high temperatures so helps to give fried products a crispy and crunchy texture; and it’s also odorless and colorless so doesn’t alter the look or smell of food products. In Asian and African countries, palm oil is used widely as a cooking oil, just like we might use sunflower or olive oil here in the UK.
Read Also: What Products Are Sustainable?
As well as being versatile, compared to other vegetable oils the oil palm is a very efficient crop, able to produce high quantities of oil over small areas of land, almost all year round. This makes it an attractive crop for growers and smallholders, who can rely on the steady income that palm oil provides.
Palm oil has been and continues to be a major driver of deforestation of some of the world’s most biodiverse forests, destroying the habitat of already endangered species like the Orangutan, pygmy elephant and Sumatran rhino. This forest loss coupled with the conversion of carbon rich peat soils are throwing out millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and contributing to climate change. There also remains some exploitation of workers and child labor. These are serious issues that the whole palm oil sector needs to step up to address because it doesn’t have to be this way.
Is it Palm Oil Sustainable?
Palm oil can be produced more sustainably and there is a role for companies, governments, and consumers to play. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil or RSPO was formed in 2004 in response to increasing concerns about the impacts palm oil was having on the environment and on society. The RSPO has production standards for growers that set best practices for producing and sourcing palm oil, and it has the buy-in of most of the global industry. RSPO encourages companies to:
- Set robust policies to remove deforestation, conversion of other natural ecosystems, such as peatlands, and human rights abuses from their supply chains
- Buy and use RSPO certified palm oil across their operations globally
- Be transparent in their use and sourcing of palm oil ensuring they know who they are buying from and where it’s been produced
It is important that the palm oil industry continues to invest in and grow support for and smallholder programmes and sustainable landscape initiatives. WWF is also working with governments in both palm oil using and palm oil producing countries to make sure that national laws are in place to ensure that any palm oil traded is free of deforestation, conversion and exploitation.
Palm oil is an incredibly efficient crop, producing more oil per land area than any other equivalent vegetable oil crop. Globally, palm oil supplies 40% of the world’s vegetable oil demand on just under 6% of the land used to produce all vegetable oils.
To get the same amount of alternative oils like soybean, coconut, or sunflower oil you would need anything between 4 and 10 times more land, which would just shift the problem to other parts of the world and threaten other habitats, species and communities. Furthermore, there are millions of smallholder farmers who depend on producing palm oil for their livelihoods. Boycotting palm oil is not the answer. Instead, we need to demand more action to tackle the issues and go further and faster.
Can you trust RSPO certified products?
The RSPO is the global standard for the sustainable production of palm oil. When palm oil is produced in adherence to RSPO standards, growers help to protect the environment and the local communities who depend on the crop for their livelihoods, so that palm oil can continue to play a key role in food security, economic development, and food supply chains. We should continue to use RSPO certified sustainable palm oil in products, as replacing it would result in more deforestation and natural habitat conversion. RSPO certified products that use palm oil from ‘Segregated’ or ‘Identity Preserved’ supply chains offer the greatest assurance of sustainable palm oil.
Along with other organizations, WWF plays an active role in influencing and shaping the RSPO standard to make sure it puts in place more safeguards for people and the planet. In November 2018, the RSPO standard was strengthened and it now represents an essential tool that can help companies achieve their commitments to palm oil that is free of deforestation, conversion of other natural habitats like peatlands, and the exploitation of people.
In 2012, the UK Government recognized that we were part of the palm oil problem and could also be part of the solution. They set a commitment for 100% of the palm oil used in the UK to be from sustainable sources that don’t harm nature or people. In 2019, 70% of the total palm oil imports to the UK were sustainable. This is great progress but there is more to be done to get to 100%.
An area that represents a substantial gap in the uptake of certified sustainable palm the use of palm-derived ingredients in animal feed – for chickens, pigs and cows, for example. Much of this palm oil material is unlikely to be certified. This area requires much stronger transparency and ambition from the UK industry, and is going to be critical over the coming years if we are to truly tackle the UK’s palm oil footprint.
Look for the RSPO label to ensure you purchase products made with certified sustainable palm oil. This label gives you the confidence that the palm oil was produced in a socially and environmentally responsible way.
Most packaged products are labeled with their companies’ contact information. Call or write the company and urge them to use certified sustainable palm oil and take other actions to support a more responsible palm oil industry, such as helping small-scale farmers improve their sustainability practices.
What is a Product That Uses Sustainably Produced Palm Oil?
According to the 2019 RSPO reports, the following significant corporations buy entirely or mostly certified sustainable palm oil in their global operations. All are also transitioning to traceable suppliers, with more than half of their supply already traceable. Traceability is already 95%-100% for General Mills, Ferrero, Hershey, Kraft Heinz, Mars, and Unilever.
The brands of each company are also listed here. Not all brands use palm oil (for example, soft drinks like 7-UP), but we included all brands for each firm because customers frequently ask.
General Mills, Hershey, and PepsiCo are among the corporations on the list that do not test on animals. Colgate-Palmolive receives a half-star rating because it has minimized animal testing and is a strong advocate for non-animal methods and legislation. The other companies either directly or indirectly test on animals.
| Company | Company Brands |
|---|---|
 Colgate-Palmolive 62% sustainable | Ajax, Colgate, Tom’s of Maine, Murphy Oil Soap, Palmolive, Speedstick deodorants, Softsoap, Irish Spring, Suavitel Fabric Softener, Hills Pet Care, Science Diet. |
| ConAgra Foods 100% sustainable | Angie’s BoomChickaPop, Banquet, Bertolli, Birds Eye, Blue Bonnet, Celeste Pizza, Chef Boyardee, Duke’s, Duncan Hines, Earth Balance, Egg Beaters, EVOL, Fleischmann’s, Frontera salsa, Gardein, Gulden’s, Healthy Choice, Hebrew National, Hunt’s, Jiffy Pop, La Choy, Log Cabin, Libby’s, Marie Callender’s, Mrs. Butterworth’s, Mrs. Paul’s, Orville Redenbacher’s, P.F. Chang’s Home Menu, PAM, Parkay, Peter Pan, Ranch Style Beans, Reddi-wip, RO*TEL, Rosarita, Slim Jim, Smart Balance, Snack Pack, Swiss Miss, Udi’s Gluten Free, Van Camp’s, Van De Kamps, Vlasic, Wesson, Wish-Bone, Aunt Jemima Frozen Breakfast Foods (other Aunt Jemima products owned by PepsiCo). |
| Ferrero Trading 100% sustainable | Nutella, TicTac, Ferrero Rocher, Kinder, Fannie Mae, Brach’s, Butterfinger, Lemonheads, Red Hots, Baby Ruth, 100 Grand, Laffy Taffy, Raisinets, Oh Henry!, Crunch Bar (formerly Nestle Crunch Bar) (Ferrero bought Nestle’s candy business in 2018). |
| ★ General Mills 100% sustainable | Betty Crocker, Bisquick, Gold Medal, Pillsbury, Cascadian Farm, Cheerios, Chex, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Fiber One, Kix, Lucky Charms, Monsters, Total, Trix, Wheaties, Haagen Dazs, Annie’s, Bugles, Green Giant, Helper, La Saltena, Muir Glen, Nature Valley, Old El Paso, Progresso soups, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki, Yoplait, Mountain High, Totino’s/Jeno’s, Blue Buffalo pet food. |
| ★ Hershey Company 100% sustainable | Hershey’s, 5th Avenue, Allan Candy, Almond Joy, Breath Savers, Brookside, Bubble Yum, Cadbury (within US), Good & Plenty, Heath, Ice Breakers, Jolly Rancher, Kisses, Kit Kat (within US only; owned by Nestle outside US), Krackel, Milk Duds, Mounds, Mr. Goodbar, Payday, Pelon, Reese’s, Rolo, Skor, Symphony, Take5, Twizzlers, Whoppers, York, Zagnut, Zero, Whatchamacallit. |
| Kellogg Company 100% sustainable | Corn Flakes, Coco Pops, Corn Pops, Froot Loops, Frosted Flakes, Frosted Mini Wheats, All-Bran, Rice Krispies, Special K, Pop Tarts, Eggo, FiberPlus, Nutri-Grain, Morningstar Farms, Gardenburger, Famous Amos, Keebler, Murray Sugar Free Cookies, Town House, Pringles, Mother’s, Carr’s, Cheez-It, more. |
| Kraft Heinz 100% sustainable | A.1., Athenos, Back to Nature Meals, Bagel Bites, Bakers Chocolate, Capri Sun, Classico, Cool Whip, Corn Nuts, Country Time, Cracker Barrel Cheese, Crystal Light, Delimex, Gevalia, Grey Poupon, Heinz, Jack Daniel’s Sauces, Jell-O, Jet-Puffed, Knudsen, Kool-Aid, Kraft, Lea & Perrins, Lunchables, Maxwell House, Miracle Whip, Mr. Yoshida’s, Nancy’s, Ore-Ida, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia cream cheese (inside the US), Planters, Shake N Bake, Stove Top, Sure-Jell, Tassimo, TGI Fridays, Velveeta, Weight Watchers, Smart Ones, Wyler’s |
| Mars 100% sustainable | Uncle Ben’s, Tasty Bite, Seeds of Change, M&M’s, Mars, Milky Way, Snickers, 3 Muskateers, Twix, Bounty, Dove, Ethel M. Chocolates, Life Savers, Skittles, Starburst, Altoids, Wrigley’s gums (Doublemint, Eclipse, Extra, Freedent, Juicy Fruit, Orbit, Spearmint). Pet care: Banfield Pet Hospital, Bluepearl, Cesar, Dreamies, Eukanuba, Iams, Nutro, Pedigree, Pet Partners, Royal Canin, Sheba, Temptations, Waltham, Whiskas |
| ★ PepsiCo 100% sustainable | Pepsi, 7UP, Mountain Dew, Aquafina, Gatorade, Tropicana, Lay’s, Ruffles, Doritos, Tostitos, Cheetos, Sun Chips, Sabra, Quaker Oats, Life cereal, Cap’n Crunch, Aunt Jemima, Rice-A-Roni, Grandma’s cookies |
| Unilever 99.5% sustainable | Axe, Caress, Clear, Degree, Dove, Lever 2000, Nexxus, Noxzema, Pond’s, Q-tips, Simple, St. Ives, Suave, TRESemme, Vaseline, Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Klondike, Magnum, Popsicle, Hellmann’s, Knorr, Lipton, |
The following cruelty-free brands use certified sustainable palm oil, based on statements on their websites or on official palm oil reports filed with RSPO:
- Alba Botanica (owned by Hain Celestial)
- Avalon Organics (owned by Hain Celestial)
- Dose of Colors
- Dr. Bronner’s
- Earth’s Best (owned by Hain Celestial)
- Ecover (owned by SC Johnson)
- Elixery
- Formulary 55
- Grandpa Soap Co.
- Graydon Skincare
- Herbivore Botanicals
- Intelligent Nutrients
- JASON (owned by Hain Celestial)
- kosmatology
- KYPRIS
- Moon Valley Organics
- Nature Clean
- One With Nature
- Sappo Hill
- South of France
- Seventh Generation (owned by Unilever)
- Spinster Sisters
- The Seaweed Bath Co.
- Tom’s of Maine (owned by Colgate-Palmolive)
- Vermont Soap
