Taking the Haze out of palm oil

The haze from annual fires in Sumatra, which worsened disastrously in 2013, has focused regional and global attention on making palm oil production sustainable. Industry leaders are facing increasing pressure from governments and consumers to prove that their palm oil sourcing practices are sustainable. Leon Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Spire Research and Consulting, shared his views on how the palm oil industry was adapting to these new realities.

Large-scale burning in many parts of Sumatra remains an annual affair. The winds of the Southwest Monsoon circulate smoke and unhealthy particulates from the burning vegetation towards Singapore, Malaysia and many parts of Indonesia itself, such as Sumatra and the Riau islands. Aside from the public health problem it creates, the haze has drawn global attention to the environmental disaster of replacing rainforest with palm oil plantations in Sumatra and Kalimantan in an unsustainable way.

Palm oil companies are facing increasing pressure to end slash-and-burn land clearance methods. This is not new. The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil Plantation (RSPO), founded in 2004, was a response to these pressures.

But more recently, attention has been drawn to the fact that some 40% of Indonesia’s crude palm oil was produced by third-party crops or owners of small farms. Large companies and governments are facing calls to ensure that all inputs into the palm oil industry are sustainably produced.

Many large palm oil companies have been responsive to these concerns by “pledging to produce palm oil sustainably – by not clearing forests of high conservation value, not developing on peat land and adhering to a no-burn policy”. Perera shared that banks, pension funds, sovereign wealth funds and asset management funds can help to bolster such efforts through ethical investor activism.

He went on to say that investors had a vested interest in this issue. They had to ensure that their palm oil investee companies avoided any possible boycott, blacklisting or adverse regulatory decision that might damage the value of their investment. He added that Singapore’s proposed Transboundary Haze Pollution Bill was a sign that governments were “ready to take tougher action to enforce laws and take companies to task”.

https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/media/taking-the-haze-out-of-palm-oil/

Comments

The race to invest in Vietnam – How FDI is changing Vietnam’s economy and society

Vietnam’s economy has been among the fastest growing in Southeast Asia. Today, it is a key destination for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the region. In 2016, FDI climbed to USD24.4 billion, a 9 per cent growth compared to 2015. This is despite Vietnam suffering an epic drought in 2016 and a third of its vast population of 93 million people living in poverty. Vietnam has won a reputation as a cheaper manufacturing hub compared to China. Could FDI propel Vietnam to become Asia’s next Tiger economy? A growing economy With a USD200 billion Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Vietnam’s economy is tracking well since the start of deep economic reforms – known as Doi Moi – in 1986. Since 1990, its GDP per capita growth has been one of the fastest among emerging economies, at an average 6.4 per cent (yearly) growth in the 2000s. Vietnam has improved provision of basic services. In 2014, the part of the population living below poverty line fell to 13.5 per cent – down from approxim...

Africa's aviation sector opens up

When the African Union (AU) launched the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) in January this year, it finally opened up Africa’s skies. 23 signatories on board, though another 32 AU members are yet to sign on. SAATM’s launch is a part of AU’s Africa 2063 project, which is a commitment to intra-continent development. If a common regulatory framework is put into place, this could benefit intra-continental travelers immensely, thus boosting commerce and tourism flows among African countries. Will Africa become the world’s next big aviation market? For more information, click here .

Spire talks about ICT strategies at ICT market Movement 2019 in Yogyakarta

On 20th January, Spire was honored to participate in the ICT Market Movement 2019, Strategic Plan 2020 in Yogyakarta. Jeffrey Bahar, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Spire Research and Consulting Group shared his insights on the outlook for the Indonesian ICT sector and the strategies needed to win. Jeffrey discussed strategies for digital transformation, which is a watch-word among most corporates in Indonesia today. Going forward, key areas for ICT players to look at include Big Data, the Internet of Things and smart payment solutions. While cyber security remains a concern, technological advancements are improving the security options and tool-kit available to companies. Read more: https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/events/spire-talks-about-ict-strategies-at-ict-market-movement-2019-in-yogyakarta/

Harnessing social innovation for Malaysia’s progress

The Social Impact Innovation Challenge by Berbudi Berganda – driven by Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (National Innovation Agency) – brought together individuals across Malaysia to scout for innovative solutions for Malaysia’s social development. Carried out over a period of 10 weeks, 12 finalists were shortlisted out of 300 entries using selection criteria that spanned three parameters – innovation, cost-effectiveness and sustainability. Yap Far Loon, Business Development Director, Telecommunication of Spire Research and Consulting, was among the Challenge panelists interviewed on BFM 89.9 (The Business Radio Station) for the Live and Learn show. He shared his views on how to measure impact of social innovation. This Social Impact Innovation Challenge strives to turn innovative ideas into realities. To explain the impact of social innovation, Far Loon uses a simple demand-supply model. Supply here refers to the finalists. Demand refers to the beneficiaries, such as people with low-inco...

Side Click: Recognizing the taste of carbohydrates

The tongue is capable of discerning the taste of carbohydrates. Diet foods – containing artificial sweeteners but few carbs – are thus unsatisfying to many consumers. How can food manufacturers cash in on the ‘carbohydrate taste’? Tasting carbs Simple and complex carbohydrates, including sugars, are the body’s main source of energy. People tend to treat carbs as more of a necessity and “filler food” than a tasty treat. But a study conducted in 2014 suggests that the tongue senses the taste of carbohydrates in addition to the five conventional tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter and savoury). According to the study, when an individual consumes carbohydrates directly, there is a 30% increase in activity in the brain areas controlling movement and vision. Carbohydrates influence areas of the brain which are not affected by artificial sweeteners. The brain’s pleasure centers only light up when the tongue senses real carbohydrates instead of artificial sweeteners. Good news ...

The Knowledge to Decide

Search This Blog