Don't Palm Us Off
Don't Palm Us Off
Auckland Zoo's palm oil campaign continues
Our thanks to everyone who has supported our 'Don't Palm Us Off' campaign asking Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to label palm oil on food products that contain this ingredient.
The 'Don't Palm Us Off' petition has now closed.
Since last November, Auckland Zoo has collected over 14,000 signatures. Our zoo friends in Australia, who began this campaign last July, have collected over 130,000 signatures. The result is, 145,000 Kiwis and Aussies have said they want the choice.
The petition and the great public response forms the basis for continuing to join with our zoo friends in Australia to call for legislation to be changed to require palm oil to be labelled on all food products containing this ingredient.
Use our palm oil-free shopping guide
While there is not yet compulsory labelling of palm oil, you can use our palm oil-free shopping guide to help you reduce your palm oil consumption. As we discover more palm oil-free products, we'll continue to add to this list.
You can also print off our list of palm oil names and likely names for palm oil so that you can compare labels on your favourite brands to determine if palm oil is included in products these brands produce.
The problem with palm oil
Palm oil is now in up to 40% of supermarket products. This includes food (particularly snack foods), along with soaps, detergents, cosmetics and shampoos. However, on most of these products, palm oil is not labelled, leaving you the consumer, unable to make an informed choice about whether or not you want to purchase products containing palm oil.
The growth of oil palm plantations to produce palm oil in Indonesia and Malaysia is destroying rainforest habitat and fast driving the orangutan, Sumatran tiger, Asian elephant, Asian rhino and other rainforest species towards extinction.
A United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) report ('Last Stand of the Orangutan') predicts if the current growth of palm oil plantations continues, 98% of lowland forest (home for the orangutan) could be destroyed by 2022. Currently, the Sumatran orangutan population alone is estimated at just 7,300 animals and declining.
Auckland Zoo is continuing its journey towards becoming palm oil-free., and this includes working with our suppliers and contractors to minimise our overall consumption of palm oil.
Why we're working to become palm oil-free
There is still doubt surrounding the source and reliability of certified sustainable palm oil.
Auckland Zoo supports the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) and the guidelines it has set for its members. However, no compulsory audits are being carried out by the RSPO, and there is a concern that many do not comply with the guidelines.
Moreover, the amount of certified sustainable palm oil is still only a few percent of overall production, and the first shipment of sustainable palm oil produced at the end of 2008 is only slowly making its way onto the market. Meanwhile, clearance of pristine rainforest, the habitat of orangutan, elephant, tiger, rhino and many other endangered species, continues at the rate of 300 rugby fields per hour.
Auckland Zoo believes the only way to reverse this situation is for consumers to reduce consumption of palm oil.
As an organisation, Auckland Zoo has made the decision to avoid or minimise the use or sale of palm oil, with the ultimate goal of being palm oil-free.
Palm oil and the power of public pressure
The Progressive chain of supermarkets operating in Australia and New Zealand has announced that it will label palm oil on all its private label food and non-food products, including Homebrand and Select.
For Australians, this will mean private label food products at Woolworths stores, but in New Zealand, where Progressive operates two other chains, this will also extend to private label food products at Woolworths, Foodtown and Countdown.
Progressive has also committed to switching to certified sustainable palm oil by 2015.
The company had earlier stated that they would not make this shift in policy unless it was clear that there was public demand for it.
Auckland Zoo and other organisations and individuals throughout Australasia have publicly voiced their concerns over palm oil production and its devastating effect on wildlife and the environment. This is a great example of how public opinion can positively influence corporate policy.
With continued action by the public, hopefully more New Zealand retailers and manufacturers will follow suit.
At the very least, labelling of palm oil on products, which is what Auckland Zoo's 'Don't Palm Us Off' petition campaign has been advocating, will allow us all to make a fully informed choice about whether or not we want to purchase products containing palm oil.
Click here for Woolworths press release and palm oil policy. For Auckland Zoo's Palm Oil Free Shopping Guide, click here.
