Malaysia to take firm action against palm oil free labels
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Malaysia clamps down on 'disrespectful' No Palm Oil labels
Update May 9, 2024
Chocolates labelled ‘No Palm Oil’ seized in Labuan
LABUAN: The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living seized imported chocolates labelled “No Palm Oil” worth RM23,704.90 from two shops in this duty-free island on Monday (May 6).
Its Director Junaidah Arbain said the seizure was following a raid on a sundry shop (Kedai Serbaneka) and a duty-free shop in downtown Labuan.
She said the seizure was in accordance with the Trade Descriptions (Prohibition of Use of Statement, Expression or Indication) (Oil Palm Product and Palm Oil Goods) Regulations 2022.
The regulations stipulate that any labelling which discriminates against palm oil products is prohibited. Read more Daily Express
Update May 7, 2024
Indonesian palm oil, Brazilian beef top contributors to U.S. deforestation exposure
Update May 6, 2024
Our sources have confirmed the products confiscated for bearing a No Palm Oil label, are ice cream products from Tip Top New Zealand, which is carried by Malaysia stores like Jaya Grocers.
Another ice cream brand confiscated belongs to Kapiti New Zealand which was promoted by Malaysian Airlines as a luxury treat for passengers. A Google search for Kapiti ice cream in Malaysia shows it maybe sold in Village Grocers as well as online shops, Lazada and Shopee.
Stay tuned as we find out whether Kapiti and Tip Top brands will respect the No Palm Oil requirements in Malaysia.
Update May 9, 2024
Chocolates labelled ‘No Palm Oil’ seized in Labuan
LABUAN: The Ministry of Domestic Trade and Cost of Living seized imported chocolates labelled “No Palm Oil” worth RM23,704.90 from two shops in this duty-free island on Monday (May 6).
Its Director Junaidah Arbain said the seizure was following a raid on a sundry shop (Kedai Serbaneka) and a duty-free shop in downtown Labuan.
She said the seizure was in accordance with the Trade Descriptions (Prohibition of Use of Statement, Expression or Indication) (Oil Palm Product and Palm Oil Goods) Regulations 2022.
The regulations stipulate that any labelling which discriminates against palm oil products is prohibited. Read more Daily Express
Update May 7, 2024
Indonesian palm oil, Brazilian beef top contributors to U.S. deforestation exposure
- A new report reveals that the United States imported palm oil, cattle products, soybeans, cocoa, rubber, coffee and corn linked to an area of tropical deforestation the size of Los Angeles between October 2021 and November 2023.
- Palm oil from Indonesia was the largest contributor to deforestation, followed by Brazil due to cattle grazing.
- The report by Trase, commissioned by Global Witness, found that the U.S. continues to import deforestation-linked commodities while awaiting the passage of the FOREST Act, which aims to prohibit imports of products linked to illegal deforestation.
- Experts emphasize the need for action from companies, governments, financial institutions and citizens to stop commodity-driven forest loss, urging support for smallholders, increased transparency in supply chains, and the passage of the FOREST Act in the U.S. Read more Mongabay
Update May 6, 2024
Our sources have confirmed the products confiscated for bearing a No Palm Oil label, are ice cream products from Tip Top New Zealand, which is carried by Malaysia stores like Jaya Grocers.
Another ice cream brand confiscated belongs to Kapiti New Zealand which was promoted by Malaysian Airlines as a luxury treat for passengers. A Google search for Kapiti ice cream in Malaysia shows it maybe sold in Village Grocers as well as online shops, Lazada and Shopee.
Stay tuned as we find out whether Kapiti and Tip Top brands will respect the No Palm Oil requirements in Malaysia.
May 05, 2024
Since we reported on the No Palm Oil problem in Malaysia, the country has taken action with a raid on a shop that carried ice cream products with the No Palm Oil label.
According to New Straits Times:
"Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani’s warning on stern action against companies discriminating against palm oil is the right move to show the world that Malaysia is taking its industry seriously.
Economists said that the suspected sale of food products with the words “No Palm Oil” written on the plastic packaging at a convenience store in Putrajaya was probably a result of foreign management in the local retail industry, which lacked understanding of national issues."
Are Western brands guilty of conducting an anti palm oil campaign in Malaysia when these labels violate advertising laws in their home countries?
Based on previous market surveys conducted by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, the guilty product may be from Movenpick ice cream, a Nestle brand. Nestle has pledged to use only sustainable palm oil certified by the RSPO after the RSPO suspended Nestle in 2018 for a "series of breaches of RSPO members conducts."
It is not known at this writing, whether the ice cream product guilty of violating Malaysian laws on truth in advertising is actually Nestle owned Movenpick ice cream.
Movenpick's website as of May 2024, continues its "No Palm Oil" messaging which complies with the RSPO's weakened rules on members market communications claims but contravenes Malaysian laws on truth in advertising.
Stay tuned for updates on this issue.
Since we reported on the No Palm Oil problem in Malaysia, the country has taken action with a raid on a shop that carried ice cream products with the No Palm Oil label.
According to New Straits Times:
"Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani’s warning on stern action against companies discriminating against palm oil is the right move to show the world that Malaysia is taking its industry seriously.
Economists said that the suspected sale of food products with the words “No Palm Oil” written on the plastic packaging at a convenience store in Putrajaya was probably a result of foreign management in the local retail industry, which lacked understanding of national issues."
Are Western brands guilty of conducting an anti palm oil campaign in Malaysia when these labels violate advertising laws in their home countries?
Based on previous market surveys conducted by the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, the guilty product may be from Movenpick ice cream, a Nestle brand. Nestle has pledged to use only sustainable palm oil certified by the RSPO after the RSPO suspended Nestle in 2018 for a "series of breaches of RSPO members conducts."
It is not known at this writing, whether the ice cream product guilty of violating Malaysian laws on truth in advertising is actually Nestle owned Movenpick ice cream.
Movenpick's website as of May 2024, continues its "No Palm Oil" messaging which complies with the RSPO's weakened rules on members market communications claims but contravenes Malaysian laws on truth in advertising.
Stay tuned for updates on this issue.
Fresh off the success of Malaysia’s complaint against the EU for discriminatory policies against palm oil in the Renewable Energy Directive, Malaysian Minister for Plantations Industries and Commodities, Datuk Johari Ghani wants to crack down on discrimination against palm oil in Malaysia.
In a series of tweets on X, he outlined the actions that will be taken against companies that have been identified as selling products with the palm oil free claim on their labels.
In a series of tweets on X, he outlined the actions that will be taken against companies that have been identified as selling products with the palm oil free claim on their labels.
Malaysian Minister for Plantation Industries and Commodities, Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani
“STRICT ACTIONS MAY BE IMPOSED FOR THE SALE OF PRODUCTS LABELED 'PALM OIL FREE'; IT IS A DISCRIMINATORY LABEL
#SAWIT #MALAYSIA
Attended the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Signing Ceremony between FGV Holdings Berhad and Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO).
Also launched the new SAJI Malaysia cooking oil label that uses the MSPO logo at AEON Big Wangsa Maju, today.
In this meeting, I have insisted that the use of discriminatory labels against palm oil such as products labeled 'palm oil free' is prohibited according to the Trade Description Act 2011.
We have a law that states any product discrimination, especially palm oil, can be fined RM250,000.
The Ministry @MyKomoditi will work with the Ministry @KPDN_HQ to carry out enforcement and impose immediate action on the supermarkets that market it.
Malaysian Palm Oil Council - @mpocHQ has conducted a survey to identify products labeled with discrimination against palm oil in our country.
A total of 80 of the 251 premises surveyed around the Klang Valley were found to display products labeled 'Palm Oil Free'.
In the survey, there are imported products from abroad that have nothing to do with palm oil but put the label 'Palm Oil Free' on their products as a form of promoting discrimination against palm oil.”
The most notable new action in enforcing the Trade Description Act is the involvement of the Royal Malaysian Customs Department which according to Minister Ghani:
“will be made to prevent products that have a 'Palm Oil Free' label at the entrance from being brought into our country.”
The signing of the MoU between FGV and the MSPO represents a significant initiative in promoting the MSPO according to the Minister.
“Consumer products bearing the MSPO logo on SAJI cooking oil package labels prove their commitment to compliance with sustainability standards as well as increasing the reputation of the FGV product brand as an exporter of Malaysian palm oil to foreign countries.
This step can also expand MSPO's branding at the domestic and international level, as well as strengthen the country's commitment to become a sustainable oil palm producing country in the world.”
To further promote the MSPO for the Malaysian market, Minister Ghani’s proposal to incorporate MSPO certification alongside Halal Certification has been welcomed by the Halal Development Corporation Bhd.
For more information on the problem of palm oil free labels in Malaysia, read CSPO Watch coverage on the MPOC’s market survey.
Published March, 2024
#SAWIT #MALAYSIA
Attended the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) Signing Ceremony between FGV Holdings Berhad and Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO).
Also launched the new SAJI Malaysia cooking oil label that uses the MSPO logo at AEON Big Wangsa Maju, today.
In this meeting, I have insisted that the use of discriminatory labels against palm oil such as products labeled 'palm oil free' is prohibited according to the Trade Description Act 2011.
We have a law that states any product discrimination, especially palm oil, can be fined RM250,000.
The Ministry @MyKomoditi will work with the Ministry @KPDN_HQ to carry out enforcement and impose immediate action on the supermarkets that market it.
Malaysian Palm Oil Council - @mpocHQ has conducted a survey to identify products labeled with discrimination against palm oil in our country.
A total of 80 of the 251 premises surveyed around the Klang Valley were found to display products labeled 'Palm Oil Free'.
In the survey, there are imported products from abroad that have nothing to do with palm oil but put the label 'Palm Oil Free' on their products as a form of promoting discrimination against palm oil.”
The most notable new action in enforcing the Trade Description Act is the involvement of the Royal Malaysian Customs Department which according to Minister Ghani:
“will be made to prevent products that have a 'Palm Oil Free' label at the entrance from being brought into our country.”
The signing of the MoU between FGV and the MSPO represents a significant initiative in promoting the MSPO according to the Minister.
“Consumer products bearing the MSPO logo on SAJI cooking oil package labels prove their commitment to compliance with sustainability standards as well as increasing the reputation of the FGV product brand as an exporter of Malaysian palm oil to foreign countries.
This step can also expand MSPO's branding at the domestic and international level, as well as strengthen the country's commitment to become a sustainable oil palm producing country in the world.”
To further promote the MSPO for the Malaysian market, Minister Ghani’s proposal to incorporate MSPO certification alongside Halal Certification has been welcomed by the Halal Development Corporation Bhd.
For more information on the problem of palm oil free labels in Malaysia, read CSPO Watch coverage on the MPOC’s market survey.
Published March, 2024
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