The Sarawak Oil Palm Plantation Owners Association (SOPPOA) has expressed its dissatisfaction with the upcoming Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) extraordinary general meeting (EGM).
The EGM is scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur next week.
“Foremost, SOPPOA is in support of other RSPO members’ stance that the Resolution 5b on E-Voting being introduced is totally unnecessary and should be withdrawn immediately,” SOPPOA said in a statement.
It said this is because proxy voting is still being observed and part of the organisation’s charter in such procedures, so introducing something not in line with the charter is not being done in good faith.
SOPPOA, as one of the growers’ representatives in RSPO, reiterated that the current composition of RSPO representatives weighs very heavily against growers in particular, subsequently leading to the disregard of concerns and observations from growers in RSPO resolutions and agreements in many meetings and discussion groups.
“Such lopsided arrangements are certainly not a yardstick for any organisation to be viewed as balanced in its presentation of views and opinions with regards to matters pertaining to the industry,” said the statement.
Another concern for SOPPOA regarding the upcoming voting on RSPO Principles and Criteria (P&C) are the issues relating to Greenhouse Gas (GHG) and peat planting.
The association said to include GHG in the sustainable certification scheme for palm oil is akin to putting additional and unnecessary burdens on growers in particular when such schemes are not necessary for other food-based crops such as rice and maize.
For that matter, large cattle and sheep rearing activities contribute more GHG into the atmosphere than oil palm cultivation but are not subject to such stringent measures.
Worldwide, areas planted under rapeseed, sunflower and corn far outnumber oil palm but again these crops are not subjected to GHG emission checks for certification.
The association also queried the lack of justice and fairness in such scenarios and why oil palm growers are subjected to more checks and controls than other crop farmers around the world while contributing to producing cheap, sustainable palm oil for the world.
On the issue of peat, the statement said the RSPO stance of doing away with peat planting is totally in disregard to the significant and substantial contributions of such areas to the economies of Malaysia, Indonesia and their people.
Oil palm planting practices in Malaysia are among the most heavily regulated and governed industries in the country with at least 25 laws and regulations imposed on all growers, millers and refineries.
These cover areas designated for planting, setting up mills, refineries, and code of practices to ensure sustainability of oil palm planting and its products.
SOPPOA said it fully supports the implementation of Malaysia’s own national sustainable standards such as Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil in accordance with the stringent measures already implemented on the industry rather than be subjected to unreasonable and unjustifiable standards imposed by RSPO.
SOPPOA is an associate member of RSPO.
Taken from The Borneo Post
