RSPO Adopts New Sustainable Palm Oil Certification Standard

The recently concluded 15th annual general assembly of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) agreed to new certification standards for sustainable palm oil.  The newly adopted and ratified RSPO principles and criteria (P&C) 2018 aim to strengthen social development, economic, prosperity and environmental protection across the palm oil value chain, RSPO said. Reviewed every years, the P&C are a set of environmental and social requirements palm oil producers must adhere to in order to meet the RSPO certification standard.  
   
The agreement is the result of a multi-stakeholder review process, launched in March 2017, which generated almost 11,500 stakeholders comments. The P&C 2018 comes into new  effect immediately, with existing RSPO grower member given a one-year transition period to implement the new standard.  The new P&C include a number of  elements, with adopting zero deforestation through the implementation of the High Carbon Stock Approach (HCSA). HCSA is a field-tested methodology for distinguishing forest areas that should be protected or restored from degraded lands that may be developed, using an integrated land-use planning approach.