Palm Oil Producing Countries Should Take Part in Development of Sustainability Standards for EU Imports
THE EU’S FARM TO FORK (F2F) AND BIODIVERSITY STRATEGIES – SERIOUS IMPLICATIONS FOR PALM OIL
AHEAD.
This was the warning issued by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council through its senior executives, Dr. Kalyana Sundram and Uthaya Kumar. Based on historical experience with decision making at the EU, the authors warned that:
“Along the lines of what happened with biofuels, it looks like the EU will once again move ahead with a unilateral approach to define sustainable food systems and sustainable foods. The EU announced in the F2F Strategy that it is also intending to promote the global transition to sustainable food systems in international standard setting bodies, relevant multilateral fora and international events.”
AHEAD.
This was the warning issued by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council through its senior executives, Dr. Kalyana Sundram and Uthaya Kumar. Based on historical experience with decision making at the EU, the authors warned that:
“Along the lines of what happened with biofuels, it looks like the EU will once again move ahead with a unilateral approach to define sustainable food systems and sustainable foods. The EU announced in the F2F Strategy that it is also intending to promote the global transition to sustainable food systems in international standard setting bodies, relevant multilateral fora and international events.”
EU Farm to Fork Strategy
At risk is a commodity that is a leading contributor to export revenue and millions of Malaysian jobs. Statistics from the Department of Statistics Malaysia show that palm oil is a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the agricultural sector with a contribution of 37.9% in 2018. Statistics on EU imports of palm oil from Malaysia in 2018 show 1.83 million metric tons, making the EU an important market for Malaysian palm oil.
It goes without saying that Malaysia will do what is necessary to keep the EU market open. Notable in recent times is the aggressive effort by the Malaysian government to certify its palm oil under the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certifications in order to meet EU demands for sustainability. More recently, its willingness to meet the EU’s standards for 3-MPCD content in vegetable oils shows just how far Malaysia is willing to go to meet the demands of the EU.
It is therefore entirely reasonable that the industry should have a say in the formation of an EU wide policy on sustainable vegetable oils. One of the main concerns of the MPOC is that misleading marketing gimmicks like “No Palm Oil” or “Palm Oil Free” labels could have an influence on the very controversial “Front Of Pack (FOP)” labelling proposal. The FOPs are supposed to provide EU consumers all the information they would require on the health and sustainability of products on supermarket shelves at a quick glance.
What is the EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy?
Some background information is needed on the EU’s Farm to Fork strategy in order to under why the MPOC has suggested a seat at the table as the strategy is being formulated. According to the European Commission:
“The Farm to Fork Strategy is at the heart of the European Green Deal aiming to make food systems fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly.
Food systems cannot be resilient to crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic if they are not sustainable. We need to redesign our food systems which today account for nearly one-third of global GHG emissions, consume large amounts of natural resources, result in biodiversity loss and negative health impacts (due to both under- and over-nutrition) and do not allow fair economic returns and livelihoods for all actors, in particular for primary producers.
Putting our food systems on a sustainable path also brings new opportunities for operators in the food value chain.”
Civil societies, non-governmental organisations and indeed, farmers have weighed into this “sustainable food system” with differing views on what the Farm to Fork Strategy should aim to accomplish.
The European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) calls it the start of a serious debate on the future of food sustems:
“But for a true transformation this is only the first step, and in some cases the strategy is outright deficient. This especially in addressing food environments where action remains dominated by consumer information and a voluntary industry code of conduct, contravening the advice of the EU’s own chief scientists. Also, while the impacts of large-scale animal farming are acknowledged, the commitment to transition to a ‘less and better’ animal product future is elusive.”
Environmental groups weighed in with their demands for the protection of European biodiversity from the F2F strategy in this article published by ARC2020 Poking Holes in Farm to Fork: Environmental Groups Seek Coherent Vision.
Global Impact of The Farm to Fork Strategy
As the arguments roil over even simply defining what a “less and better” meat should mean in the Farm to Fork Strategy, an opinion by Stephen Cardogan as published in the IrishExaminer raised some good questions on what he described as the “EU’s wooly Farm to Fork Aspirations.”
The points raised merit some serious consideration as the Farm to Fork aspirations could be self defeating even as the EU seeks to reduce the environmental impact of EU farms.
On the global front, as the Farm to Fork Strategy looks to reduce the environmental impacts of its imported foods, similar discord is apparent with EU agriculture ministers warning that a sustainable ( i.e. more expensive ) European food system would encourage the import of “unsustainable” foods.
On the other hand, others opined that the Farm to Fork Strategy will not only hurt farmers in the Global South but fail to create a sustainable food supply that is global.
Battle Over Food Labels for EU
It is understandable that a policy with such wide ramifications will provoke argument and debate. Even the simple matter of nutritional information labelling under the EU’s search for a Front of Pack label is being argued to death. The arguments have led to the omission of the popular label Nutriscore from the latest Farm to Fork Strategy notes.
In what is being dubbed as a battle over food labels, Italy, whose exports of olive oil and processed meats are key to its economy, has launched a challenge to Nutriscore which rated both of its export products poorly. Italy’s argument on the necessity of “good fats” in healthy diets could actually be quoted for palm oil, especially red palm oil which has high natural content for beta-carotene and tocotrienols both of which are essential for optimal human health.
It remains to be seen if the EU will invite the palm oil producing countries of Malaysia and Indonesia to provide input towards the development of an EU standard for sustainable palm oil.
One thing for sure is the establishment of an EU FOP label should remove once and for all, the marketing of products as “Palm Oil Free” which is deceitful as the products do not show how palm oil substitutes are healthier or better for the environment.
EU Food Strategy for Sustainability Must Think Globally
In its ambition to make the EU food systems fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly, it must be accepted that the main thrust behind the Farm to Fork Strategy will address the health and environment of the countries and citizens of the European Union. Especially so for European farmers who are the foundation of a sustainable society.
It must also be accepted that the EU is unable to achieve its ambitious goals for Europe’s natural environment without the import of natural resources from other regions. Whether it be for meat, coffee or vegetable oils, the best measure the EU can undertake to ensure the sustainability of its food sources is through scrutiny under certification.
The Green New Deal for Europe has the potential to create a lasting impact on sustainability in food sources globally but in order to achieve that, the EU has to abandon the business model of old where it ignores the needs of developing countries and adopt an inclusive model. A good start would be to invite palm oil producing countries to sit and work out sustainability standards for palm oil which address both the need of EU consumers to lower their environmental impact and the needs of developing countries.
Published June 2020. CSPO Watch
It goes without saying that Malaysia will do what is necessary to keep the EU market open. Notable in recent times is the aggressive effort by the Malaysian government to certify its palm oil under the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certifications in order to meet EU demands for sustainability. More recently, its willingness to meet the EU’s standards for 3-MPCD content in vegetable oils shows just how far Malaysia is willing to go to meet the demands of the EU.
It is therefore entirely reasonable that the industry should have a say in the formation of an EU wide policy on sustainable vegetable oils. One of the main concerns of the MPOC is that misleading marketing gimmicks like “No Palm Oil” or “Palm Oil Free” labels could have an influence on the very controversial “Front Of Pack (FOP)” labelling proposal. The FOPs are supposed to provide EU consumers all the information they would require on the health and sustainability of products on supermarket shelves at a quick glance.
What is the EU’s Farm to Fork Strategy?
Some background information is needed on the EU’s Farm to Fork strategy in order to under why the MPOC has suggested a seat at the table as the strategy is being formulated. According to the European Commission:
“The Farm to Fork Strategy is at the heart of the European Green Deal aiming to make food systems fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly.
Food systems cannot be resilient to crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic if they are not sustainable. We need to redesign our food systems which today account for nearly one-third of global GHG emissions, consume large amounts of natural resources, result in biodiversity loss and negative health impacts (due to both under- and over-nutrition) and do not allow fair economic returns and livelihoods for all actors, in particular for primary producers.
Putting our food systems on a sustainable path also brings new opportunities for operators in the food value chain.”
Civil societies, non-governmental organisations and indeed, farmers have weighed into this “sustainable food system” with differing views on what the Farm to Fork Strategy should aim to accomplish.
The European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) calls it the start of a serious debate on the future of food sustems:
“But for a true transformation this is only the first step, and in some cases the strategy is outright deficient. This especially in addressing food environments where action remains dominated by consumer information and a voluntary industry code of conduct, contravening the advice of the EU’s own chief scientists. Also, while the impacts of large-scale animal farming are acknowledged, the commitment to transition to a ‘less and better’ animal product future is elusive.”
Environmental groups weighed in with their demands for the protection of European biodiversity from the F2F strategy in this article published by ARC2020 Poking Holes in Farm to Fork: Environmental Groups Seek Coherent Vision.
Global Impact of The Farm to Fork Strategy
As the arguments roil over even simply defining what a “less and better” meat should mean in the Farm to Fork Strategy, an opinion by Stephen Cardogan as published in the IrishExaminer raised some good questions on what he described as the “EU’s wooly Farm to Fork Aspirations.”
The points raised merit some serious consideration as the Farm to Fork aspirations could be self defeating even as the EU seeks to reduce the environmental impact of EU farms.
On the global front, as the Farm to Fork Strategy looks to reduce the environmental impacts of its imported foods, similar discord is apparent with EU agriculture ministers warning that a sustainable ( i.e. more expensive ) European food system would encourage the import of “unsustainable” foods.
On the other hand, others opined that the Farm to Fork Strategy will not only hurt farmers in the Global South but fail to create a sustainable food supply that is global.
Battle Over Food Labels for EU
It is understandable that a policy with such wide ramifications will provoke argument and debate. Even the simple matter of nutritional information labelling under the EU’s search for a Front of Pack label is being argued to death. The arguments have led to the omission of the popular label Nutriscore from the latest Farm to Fork Strategy notes.
In what is being dubbed as a battle over food labels, Italy, whose exports of olive oil and processed meats are key to its economy, has launched a challenge to Nutriscore which rated both of its export products poorly. Italy’s argument on the necessity of “good fats” in healthy diets could actually be quoted for palm oil, especially red palm oil which has high natural content for beta-carotene and tocotrienols both of which are essential for optimal human health.
It remains to be seen if the EU will invite the palm oil producing countries of Malaysia and Indonesia to provide input towards the development of an EU standard for sustainable palm oil.
One thing for sure is the establishment of an EU FOP label should remove once and for all, the marketing of products as “Palm Oil Free” which is deceitful as the products do not show how palm oil substitutes are healthier or better for the environment.
EU Food Strategy for Sustainability Must Think Globally
In its ambition to make the EU food systems fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly, it must be accepted that the main thrust behind the Farm to Fork Strategy will address the health and environment of the countries and citizens of the European Union. Especially so for European farmers who are the foundation of a sustainable society.
It must also be accepted that the EU is unable to achieve its ambitious goals for Europe’s natural environment without the import of natural resources from other regions. Whether it be for meat, coffee or vegetable oils, the best measure the EU can undertake to ensure the sustainability of its food sources is through scrutiny under certification.
The Green New Deal for Europe has the potential to create a lasting impact on sustainability in food sources globally but in order to achieve that, the EU has to abandon the business model of old where it ignores the needs of developing countries and adopt an inclusive model. A good start would be to invite palm oil producing countries to sit and work out sustainability standards for palm oil which address both the need of EU consumers to lower their environmental impact and the needs of developing countries.
Published June 2020. CSPO Watch
UPDATE June 26, 2020. ‘Palm oil-free’ claims illegal, says EU-based lawyer
KUALA LUMPUR: A European-based lawyer has urged the palm oil industry to consider bringing the ‘palm oil-free’ or ‘no palm oil’ claims on food products before selected EU Member States’ courts or administrative authorities, saying they are illegal under EU law under multiple interpretative lenses and legal instruments.
FratiniVergano lawyer Paolo R Vergano said on May 20 this year, the European Commission presented the communication on a farm-to-fork (F2F) strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system. TheBorneoPost
KUALA LUMPUR: A European-based lawyer has urged the palm oil industry to consider bringing the ‘palm oil-free’ or ‘no palm oil’ claims on food products before selected EU Member States’ courts or administrative authorities, saying they are illegal under EU law under multiple interpretative lenses and legal instruments.
FratiniVergano lawyer Paolo R Vergano said on May 20 this year, the European Commission presented the communication on a farm-to-fork (F2F) strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system. TheBorneoPost