Extracted From Malaysiakini

Palm oil council rejects British criticism

AFP | Jan 11, 08 3:09pm

Malaysia's palm oil council today rejected a ruling by the British advertising watchdog that its advertisements were misleading, and insisted that Malaysian palm oil is produced sustainably.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) this week censured the commercials, saying they wrongly implied that Malaysia's vast palm oil plantations were good for the environment.

The Malaysian Palm Oil Council said in a statement on its website that it was "extremely disappointed" with the verdict.

"We do not feel that the advertisements mislead in any way, and we stand by our claim that Malaysian palm oil is produced sustainably," it said.

The first commercial showed a palm oil plantation while a voice-over said: "Its trees give life and help our planet breathe, and give home to hundreds of species of flora and fauna."

The ASA said the advert was likely to mislead viewers about the environmental benefits of the plantations compared with native rainforest, and that the claim about flora and fauna was also likely to mislead.

The second advert's voice-over said: "Its trees give life and help our planet breathe. Its fruit provides vitamins for our bodies and energy for our daily lives."

Eco-friendly biofuel

"Because there was not a consensus that there was a net benefit to the environment from Malaysia's palm oil plantations, we concluded the ads were misleading," the ASA said.

The council said the complaint had inferred that oil palm plantations typically replace native rainforests, but that in fact they were usually planted on existing agricultural land.

It said that less than 20 percent of Malaysia's land mass was devoted to agriculture "compared to typically 70 percent in the developed countries".

Palm oil producers including Malaysia - the global leader - have fought a long battle against allegations that plantations destroy rainforest, annihilate orangutans, exploit workers and cause air pollution.

But palm oil production and prices have soared in recent years as it finds favour as a source of "eco-friendly" biofuel and as a substitute for the new dietary baddy trans fats, which were commonly used in processed food.

Environmentalists are alarmed by the new mood, and say that the benefits in terms of health and alternative energy will not outweigh the damage wreaked by a dramatic expansion of palm oil planting, particularly in Indonesia.