Palm Oil

Issues > Palm Oil

Palm oil is found in 1 in 10 supermarket products including shampoos, baking oil, chocolate, cosmetics, chips, cookies, margarine and soaps. It has recently been deemed a potential saviour as a renewable resource for use as a biofuel. 1

Unfortunately, not only does palm oil promote heart disease, but the vast plantations that grow oil palm trees have contributed to the destruction of the rainforest of South East Asia and threaten the survival of animals such as the Orangutan in Borneo, the Sumatran tiger, and Asian rhinoceros. Additionally, burning after deforestation accounts for significant greenhouse gas emissions. 2

Learn about the issues and sign the petition for compulsory labeling. Melbourne Zoo's "Don't Palm Us Off" campaign

Check the ingredients - if there is palm oil, avoid it, send a letter to the manufacturer telling them of your action. (Note: it may be labelled as simply “vegetable oil”)

See the 'Helping you buy responsibly' section on the BOS website for a list of manufacturers who are committed to avoiding the use of palm oil. BOS Australia

Get involved Palm Oil Action Group

Find out more Australian Orangutan Project

1 www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/economy/news/orangutan_report.html
2 http://www.orangutan.org.au/100.html

* The contents of these YouTube links are not necessarily endorsed by the Ethical Consumer Group.
Rather these are discussion starters about the relevant issues.

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