The palm oil industry scrutinized under the lens of political ecology

By
Nikhil Bharadwaj

In the film King Corn, we witnessed just how dependent we as a society were on corn. From the
corn-fed cows to high fructose syrup in sodas, the preponderance of our daily diet has been
overpowered by this unwholesome product. This form of industrialization along with its desire
for omnipresence does not end with corn. History is repeating itself but this time around its
palm oil thats in the spotlight. Although, one could argue that the commodification of corn
paved way for affordable food systems, the same argument does not come to the rescue when
discussing oil palms. Moreover, just how the cotton industry has dominated the markets in
Bangladesh, palm oil industry is growing at alarming rates in Indonesia. Both industries have had
its own negative externalities passed on to the poor but palm oil is doing more harm than good as
a whole. In this essay, I will be concentrating on these overarching themes while peering through
the lens of human-environment interactions.

As explained by Michael Pollans in his documentary The Botany of Desire, plants in a way
have a their own set of aspirations that depend on human emotion and judgement. However, as
seen with potatoes and our need for control or tulips with our desire for beauty; I do not see
anything specific underlying the growth of oil palms other than mere indulgence and debauchery.
The skyrocketing development of palm oil has surpassed our basic Maslowian needs to
something more avaricious. The results have transcended local social injustices to global
environmental and biolife degradation.

The palm oil industry is responsible for not only endangering orangutans and elephants but also
for toxic air and carbon pollution. One of the main reasons for this epidemic is the use of slash
and burn practices in these rich tropical rainforests. In 2015, fires in Indonesia generated about
600m tonnes of greenhouse gases, which is roughly equivalent to Germanys entire annual
output (Aba & Maria, 2017). These fires caused the deaths of many orangutans leaving some of
them as orphans. Currently, there are 480 orangutans in Nyaru Menteng Orangutan
Rehabilitation Center as a direct consequence (Cochrane, 2016). One could draw a parallel here
to the cattle farms and how their corn based diets are slowly killing them.

Just like the overfished fisheries outlined by Garrett Hardin along with his analysis of the misuse
of the commons fueled by overpopulation, the tropical forests have been mistreated by our
society under lack of stringent policies and regulatory bodies. This is truly an example of the
tragedy of the commons (Hardin, 1968). The environmental degradation and loss of
biodiversity is only half the story. Humanity too, although believing to be impervious to its own
actions, has succumbed to the detrimental effects of palm oil production. The burning of these
peatlands induces a golden haze of death around it. The smoke contains dangerous chemicals
such as carbon monoxide, ammonia and cyanide and may have caused the premature deaths of as
many as 100,000 people in south-east Asia in 2015(Carmenta & VAUGHN, 2017). This tragic
loss of human life can be compared to the thousands that died in Bangladeshs textile industry
incident due to poor working conditions.

In Bangladesh, at least the cotton industry is paving way for a slightly better lifestyle and
economic development. Textiles and clothing make up more than 90 percent of all
manufacturing exports (Planet Money, NPR 2013). Similarly, palm oil industry is the third
largest export revenue generator in Indonesia simply because the alternatives like coconut oil are
not as efficient(Orangutan Foundation International). Yet, the economic spillover is meaningless
when one has to sacrifice oxygen itself for it. Another negative effect from a social justice
perspective is the illegal and unruly eviction of underprivileged landowners in these nutrient rich
lands. Furthermore, it is the poor who suffer the most when the pollutants looms over the cities
as they are unable to afford preventative measures like oxygen masks and relocation. Just as the
small farmers suffered due to mechanization in the past, the voiceless stakeholders suffer here
from both economic and environmental ramifications.
In the corn industry we see the government subsidize and incentivize corn producers to maintain
global control and power. This sort of governmental influence can also be followed to the palm
oil industry by observing the corrupt involvements of the Indonesian government in palm oil
production. In the movie Before the Flood, we discovered that the government is known to
illegally allow permits for land clearing in restricted forest area. This highlights how resources
can be weapons of political power and the fact that geography and ecology cannot be studied
without recognizing the role power plays in it.

All the aforementioned disadvantages of the palm oil industry showcased how unsustainable the
whole industry is from a social, environmental and economic perspective. Moreover, the oil palm
trees themselves are unsustainable. Studies have shown that climate change is affecting the
environment required for the effective growth of oil palms. Decreases in climatic suitability for
oil palm in the region were gradual by 2030 but became more pronounced by 2100. These
projections imply that oil palm growth will be affected severely by climate change, with obvious
implications to the economies of (a) Indonesia and Malaysia and (b) the palm oil industry, but
with potential benefits towards reducing climate change (Patterson et al. 2015). The irony here
can simply not be ignored. It is high time we as a society realize that the economy is not
independent of the environment.

Fortunately, we are seeing increasing levels of awareness, positive governance and supply chain
sustainability with regards to palm oil. the Indonesian supreme court in 2015 ordered palm oil
company PT Kallista Alam to pay a record amount of $26m (21m) in fines and reparations for
its cut-and-burn practices in the Tripa peat swamp region (Aba & Maria, 2017). There have
also been developments in fair-trade policies around palm oil production. The inauguration of the
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil is one such example. Corporations themselves have started
implementing sustainability programs while others have even pledged towards zero deforestation.
This is a small step towards a sustainable future where orangutans can have a safe home, citizens of
Indonesia and Malaysia can breathe fresh air and the global climate emissions are in check. We as a
society should continue to spread awareness, government bodies should push for strict environment
focused policies and finally companies should improve transparency and traceability throughout their
commodity chains.

Bibliography:

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