The RSPO was set up in response to major public concern about deforestation for palm oil.
Apart from environmental criteria, it also aims to address concern about human rights abuses, evictions, land-grabbing and intolerable working conditions, although palm oil industry, and in particular the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, has, on the whole, never acknowledged their responsibility for serious negative environmental and social impacts.
Serious concerns about the RSPO as a tool for 'greenwashing' and for facilitating market expansion have been expressed, most recently in an international declaration against the RSPO, signed by over 240 organisations, which supports a separate declaration by Colombian environmental and social organisations.
This analysis is based on the information provided in the three assessment reports, together with other documents published by the RSPO and by the respective companies.
Without independent information about the actual conditions on the certified estates, it is impossible to judge how accurate or complete the information given by the assessors and the companies is – except in cases where the information provided by assessors conflicts with that given on the company's website or otherwise publicly available. No information is available regarding the quality of the assessors' interviews with workers, smallholders and other local people, and on whether people felt free to openly report any concerns.
The analysis looks at how strictly the principles and criteria of the RSPO have been interpreted, and how the certificates reflect on the stated RSPO commitment to guarantee social and environmental sustainability with regards to the certified palm oil.

By: A. Ernsting

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