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COP26 was a milestone for Indonesia. As countries struggle to achieve self-defined objectives to reduce emissions and protect the environment, President Jokowi was one of few who could claim his country was ahead of schedule. Jokowi stated that Indonesia aimed to “transform its forest and land-use sector into Net Carbon Sink by 2030” thanks to sustainable

The European Commission published its Due Diligence proposals today, as part of its anti-deforestation Regulation. The proposed EU law would introduce a Due Diligence system to rank countries from ‘high risk’ to ‘low risk’ of deforestation, targeting palm oil and other commodities. This arbitrary and unilateral approach to Due Diligence risks becoming a new trade

The UK Government’s landmark legislation for Due Diligence for deforestation – the first of its kind by any major economy – has now passed its final Parliamentary hurdle. The UK has decided that a legality standard is the best way to approach Due Diligence. The legality standard means that importers must have proof that local laws on

The UK Government continues to push its Due Diligence legislation, aimed at removing products linked to illegal deforestation from the UK market. The legislation has now passed the House of Lords (on 13th October). The legislative process should be completed before the end of 2021. This means that, if it stays on track, the UK

Greenpeace has today released a report that heavily criticises Indonesia’s palm oil industry. There is very little new or surprising in the report. In fact, the most interesting thing about the document is its tone. It has the aggressive, antagonistic tone of an organisation that is failing to keep up with the modern world. Indonesia

This week marks an important turning point in the Indonesia-EU relation, with the visit of EU Vice-President, Mr. Timmermans, who is in charge of the EU Green Deal. The VP is scheduled to meet with President Joko Widodo and key Indonesian Ministries (Energy, Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Foreign Affairs), as well as the Secretary General of

A storm in a teacup has been generated over the past few weeks by WWF, Rainforest Action Network and allied NGOs, around the end of Indonesia’s palm oil moratorium, which lapsed this month. The NGOs demanded that the government must “extend it for longer as we still have the same problems”. Nothing could be further

Last month, the European Commission together with Guidehouse Consultancy launched a call for data about palm oil yield curves as it is attempting to establish what it refers to as a ‘dynamic yield baseline’ for oil palm plantations. The Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) has presented a detailed submission to the EU, outlining the data

Brussels’ approach to Indonesian palm oil is beset with confusion. Some EU officials – most notably the EU Embassies in Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur – insist publicly that the EU has no problem with palm oil imports, and is not trying to ban it. This is positive and welcome rhetoric. Unfortunately, it is fairly often

The European Commission has published a new Guidance Document, aimed “to address the risk of forced labour” in EU businesses’ supply chains. The document, promoted by the Directorate-General for Trade (DG Trade) and the External Action Service (EEAS), gives a clear indication of how the EU will approach labour rights issue in its forthcoming Due Diligence