KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 15): The Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC) has developed a Global Framework of Principles of Sustainable Palm Oil (GFP-SPO) that aims to be a common language across different certification schemes applied to palm oil production anchored in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) as its base.

The council said the framework could also be used to value the contribution of palm oil towards achieving sustainable development in all producing countries and shall lay the foundation for the establishment of a sustainable vegetable oil platform.

“The GFP-SPO was officially launched today on the webinar titled ‘Global Framework for Sustainable Palm Oil’ attended by representatives of CPOPC member and observer countries as well as other related stakeholders in palm oil sustainability schemes,” it said in a statement on Tuesday (Feb 15).

The CPOPC said the important document was adopted and approved by ministers of member countries in the ninth ministerial meeting on Dec 4, 2021.

Executive director Tan Sri Dr Yusof Basiron said the GFP would be used as a reference because its principles draw and expand upon current sustainable palm oil certification schemes, such as the Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil and Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil, as well as provide guidance to future ones.

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities secretary-general Datuk Ravi Muthayah stated that the framework is important to ensure palm oil is able to meet global demand in a sustainable and productive way by adhering to the SDG principles.

“The principles are global in nature and universally applicable, taking into account different national realities and levels of development,” he said. 

Malaysian Palm Oil Certification Council senior manager of system management department Simon Selvaraj noted that the framework would elevate the bar in sustainability requirements as it is able to holistically measure the UN SDGs.

”The GFP-SPO shall play a wider role in addressing sustainability issues with early adoption, which would significantly help everyone in the supply chain,” he added.

Source : The Edge Markets