• Consumer products from palm oil to timber and seafood have seen a surge in certifications in recent years as consumer demands for sustainability increased.

• These certified sustainable products are however, coming under a lot of heat from environmental groups who say that certification, especially voluntary certification which dominates the market, does not work to stop deforestation.

• Importing countries especially the European Union are responding with proposals to reduce imported deforestation through certification.

The latest round of criticism against certification came from Greenpeace which reiterated the group’s opposition to certification in a harshly worded report “Destruction: Certified.”

The introduction to the report stated that:

“The purpose of this report is to assess the effectiveness of (mainly voluntary) certification for land-based commodities as an instrument to address global deforestation, forest degradation and other ecosystem conversion and associated human rights abuses (including violations of Indigenous rights and labour rights). Ultimately the aim is to inform decision making by governments and companies on what role certification can play as a tool for cleaning up supply chains, what reforms are required and what other measures are needed to address the wider biodiversity and climate crises.

The analysis in this report shows that certification is a weak tool to address global forest and ecosystem destruction.”

From the industry’s point of view, COCERAL, FEDIOL and FEFAC, which represent EU grains and oilseed trade have argued, in reference to soy, that their members are heavily engaged in voluntary supply chain initiatives in high risk areas with their efforts resulting in a marked reduction of conversion of native habitat.

The influential trade group repeated its position in 2021 with a statement “Seven steps to curb deforestation and enhance forest protection: Looking beyond EU-only solutions.”

The statement provided keen insight into how EU industry has grappled with the issue of sustainability and urged the European Parliament to adopt foreign trade policy approaches where partnering with producing countries will be key.

“Over a decade of experience in driving supply chain transformation has shown us that a ‘smart mix’ of different measures is needed, which requires first and foremost the establishment of partnerships with producing countries.

Continuous dialogue at government-to-government level, both in bilateral and multilateral set-ups, needs to be further encouraged. Within a framework of international collaboration, supporting and enabling producing countries to strengthen land use planning, governance and land tenure, notably, is key.”

From the European Parliament’s point of view, the call to the European Commission to put forward rules to stop EU-driven global deforestation through mandatory due diligence for companies placing products on the EU market highlighted:

• EU consumption represents around 10 % of global deforestation

• Voluntary initiatives have failed to halt deforestation

• Traceability obligations for companies on the EU market must be set up

• Since 1990, forests covering an area larger than South Africa have been lost

Sustainable Land Use in Malaysia

Seen against these recent calls for urgent action for the sustainable production of common agricultural goods like cooking oils, Malaysia stands out as the country most ready to prove the sustainability of its exports.

Multiple certification schemes have existed to manage the sustainable production of Malaysian exports including timber, cocoa and rubber. The certification of palm oil under the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil scheme (MSPO) is a late addition by comparison as Malaysia recognized a need to prove that its palm oil production was sustainably managed.

The scheme which was created in 2015 as a voluntary certification was declared mandatory by government decree in 2017 with a deadline set for certification by the end of 2020.

As of this writing, the implementation of MSPO standards across all palm oil production in Malaysia has reached 88%. The difficulties in achieving 100% certification as mandated are with independent smallholders where issues including legal land title and document keeping need to be resolved before certification. These are being tackled by state governments which oversee land ownership and other agencies to assist smallholders with understanding the demands of the MSPO certification scheme.

Nonetheless, the addition of the national standard for sustainable palm oil production under the MSPO provides the final key to sustainable land use in Malaysia.

The European oilseeds trades identified the problem with reducing deforestation when the groups stated that “Stigmatizing and discriminating a specific commodity or origin has not shown so far to be effective for reducing deforestation.”

The MSPO provides a good model for the credibility of its certification as it is not a stand-alone product but one that is part of a sound land use plan implemented by the Malaysian government.

Sustainable Land Use Globally

The criticism of certification schemes by Greenpeace and the suggestions of government-to-government cooperation have been taken to heart.

The MSPO as a global pioneer in mandatory certification schemes understands that it needs to prove itself to the global markets as there are no other precedents by which it can be compared to.

This is why the MSPO standards are reviewed constantly with invitations for the world at large to provide input into its standards. As a product that has contributed much to the sustainable development of Malaysia, the government understands that sustainability cannot be pegged alone on the development of one country but how that product contributes towards the sustainability of the planet as a whole.

Criticism of the European Union’s Green Deal which warned that its “targets to reduce carbon emissions and enhance forests, farming, green transport, recycling and renewable energy” will offshore environmental damage to other countries will not apply to Malaysia.

If anything, the Malaysian palm oil industry under the auspices of the MSPO welcomes the opportunity to prove its credentials in meeting farming standards in the European Union. Malaysia looks forward to the leadership of the European Union in the words of the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen who has said that the EU wants to show the rest of the world how to be sustainable and competitive.