Updates
Launch of Musim Mas Extension Services Programme
Published 07 Feb 2018
A common sustainability challenge for Musim Mas and other palm oil production and trading companies is the risk that independent smallholders pose on the issue of deforestation and land conversion. For many mills it is challenging to trace back to smallholder plantation level to identify risky suppliers, because FFB (Fresh Fruit Bunch) is supplied through multiple layers of traders and collectors. It is not efficient to analyse the chain-of-custody for each mill. Most importantly, traceability has no viable impact on the ground.
Current practices and innovation in finance for smallholder oil palm
Published 22 Jan 2018
CIFOR have recently published an InfoBrief on Current practices and innovations in smallholder palm oil finance in Indonesia and Malaysia, authored by SHARP partners SNV and Financial Access Consulting Services.
Public Consultation on the Bonsucro Smallholder Standard and Calculator
Published 10 Jan 2018
Many participants recognised the potential value of certification as a tool to drive more sustainable practice in the sector as a whole, but acknowledged that few small producers are currently able to achieve certification in its current format. Bonsucro has just launched a public consultation on a draft standard and calculator for smallholders, inviting feedback through an online questionnaire. There is market pull for responsible and/or certified product from some big consumer goods companies and some general ambitions around combining efforts to reduce cost and achieve a critical mass and impact in the market. To support decent livelihoods for smallholder sugar cane farmers some delegates felt there is a need to look beyond certification.
Revision of RSPO New Planting Procedures (NPP) for Smallholders
Published 04 Oct 2017
The guidance is mainly intended for use by Group Managers, who are responsible for ensuring that members comply with all NPP requirements, and reporting to RSPO in this regard. The draft guidance document is available in six languages on the RSPO website.
The intention is to streamline the process by introducing a pre-assessment to identify the cases where Groups do not need to develop a full NPP report. The two-stage process is illustrated in the form of a flow chart.
Review of RSPO Principles and Criteria (P&Cs)
Published 04 Oct 2017
To seek public input on this question a subgroup of the P&C Review Taskforce has framed various 'Considerations for Smallholders'. This document is available on the RSPO website, below the section dealing with the general consultation on the revised P&Cs. The ‘Considerations for Smallholders’ document, which is available in seven languages, is composed of four sections. The latter three sections highlight three critical choices in RSPO’s approach to simplification: