Indonesia-Malaysia palm oil sustainability standard 'hard to implement'
The Vice President of the Council of Governors of RSPO, Edi Suhardi, who represents the Indonesian oil palm plantation owners, judges that harmonization of the relevant laws on the Indonesian and Malaysian palm oil standards certification will not be easy to implement.
"The industry business standards are simple, but we cannot go smooth sailing when it comes to synchronizing the laws," he said on the sidelines of the 13th RSPO Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Wednesday.
"For example, Indonesia may be able to be more transparent to hand over electronic maps. However, Malaysia is protected by secrecy laws," he said.
Indonesia and Malaysia agreed to set up a Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC), and to draft a single standard for sustainable palm oil.
The agreement is a follow up to the meeting in Bogor on October 11th between President Joko Widodo and Prime Minister Najib Razak, to face the challenges in the world palm oil market, in which both countries jointly control 85 percent.
Both countries are setting up a task force to harmonize both countries' industry standards. The effort is aimed at promoting the welfare of the small oil palm plantation owners in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Edi said, "The regional certificate may or may not work, depending on the governments involved.
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