Lesson video

Hello, my name's Mrs. Harking.

Today's lesson is The Palm Oil Dilemma, taken from the unit Natural Resources: Can Earth Meet Our Needs? Today, we're going to be exploring an ingredient which is used in lots of different foods and cosmetics, but lots of people don't actually know what it is, where it comes from, or if there are any problems with its production.

So we're going to investigate that today.

I hope you enjoy.

Let's get started.

The outcome of today's lesson is to analyse the environmental and social consequences of palm oil production, and explore the sustainable alternatives.

Here are some keywords that are important in today's lesson, palm oil is edible oil produced from the fruit of oil palm trees.

Deforestation is the complete removal of trees.

And biodiversity is the variety of living things in an ecosystem or area.

Our lesson today is in two parts.

Firstly, the consequences of palm oil production, and secondly, the sustainable alternatives for palm oil production.

So consequences first.

Before we can get into the detail of the consequences, we need to know what palm oil is.

So oil palm trees, like this one here, have oil palm fruit that you can see here.

They're processed, and we can actually get palm oil from this.

The fleshy outer layer is used to create crude palm oil, which is often used in food.

So you can see that in the glass on the left-hand side.

And then the hard inner kernels of the fruit produce palm kernel oil, which is used in food and non-food products.

And you can see that that's a lot clearer, and it's in the glass on the right-hand side.

So two different types of palm oil are produced from the oil palm tree.

Note, it's not the palm oil tree, it's the oil palm tree.

Time for a check for understanding now.

Palm oil is sourced from the fruit of the, what tree is it? Well done.

It's oil palm.

Note that it is not the palm oil tree.

So if you did say, "Palm oil," remember, confusingly, it's the other way around.

Palm oil is found in a huge number of supermarket products, so white bread, shampoo, soap, chocolate, ice cream, these are just some examples of the sorts of products that will contain palm oil.

Some people say that up to 50% of supermarket products contain palm oil, but there's disagreement over the exact numbers.

What everyone can agree is it's an awful lot of products.

Despite the fact that an area of rainforest, nearly the size of Greater London, has been deforested in under a decade for oil palm plantations.

So nearly the size of Greater London.

That's the size of a pretty big city, isn't it? Oil palm is predominantly grown in hot tropical climates that have significant rainfall.

We can see on the map here that these climates are generally found between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn.

And this is just the climate that is required for oil palm trees to grow successfully.

Indonesia and Malaysia are the world's top producers of palm oil, accounting for over 80% of global supply.

You can see on scale at the bottom of our choropleth map here that the darker shaded blue colours show greater production of palm oil.

And this dark blue colour is showing over 5 million tonnes of palm oil produced per country per year.

Deforestation to make way for oil palm plantations has significant environmental impacts.

We can see here on this GIS that actually, we can compare satellite images.

Our first image is from 2014, and it's from an area called Rawa Singkil in Indonesia.

And when that swipes across, we can then see 2022, and a satellite image from then.

If you look at the circled area, you can see that it changes from a forested area to more grid-style structure.

And this is because a plantation has replaced the natural forest, and this is a less dense area of vegetation.

Andeep says, "Surely, it's not too much of an environmental problem, though.

The forest is still being replaced by trees, so habitats and carbon storage are not entirely lost." It makes sense what he's thinking, right? Unfortunately, it's not true.

Habitat destruction threatens biodiversity significantly.

Here, we have an example.

We've got a wild fig tree.

Wild fig trees produce fruit all year round for many species, such as orangutans.

They're one of the many tree species felled to make way for oil palm.

So a lot of species rely on this tree for a food source.

So if the area only has oil palm trees, which, obviously, farmers don't want the fruit eaten from, then it's not going to be sustainable for animals to survive in this area effectively.

Orangutans are significantly affected by deforestation, and it's the main cause for the loss of over 100,000 orangutans in Borneo alone, gosh, since 1999, as it removes food and shelter.

We've also got our predator species, such as tigers, that are affected by this deforestation.

So there's only around 400 Sumatran tigers remaining due to the loss of large enough hunting grounds and prey, as well as increased conflict with humans.

Species, such as tigers, need really large hunting grounds in order to be able to sustain them.

And as soon as you start removing sections of habitat, that causes huge problems for these species, because they can't hunt in a broad enough area to be able to eat enough to survive.

So all of these species have been affected dramatically by the deforestation due to oil palm plantations.

Rare plants are threatened by deforestation.

Rafflesia arnoldii is the plant on the right-hand side here, we can see the flower, and it's also known as a carrion flower.

It's the world's largest flower.

You can see there, it's labelled one metre big, it's huge.

This rare species lives hidden inside the tetrastigma vines, which we can see on the left-hand side.

Not what you've thought, right? You'd have thought you'd have a tiny species if it's going to be hidden in amongst the tetrastigma vine.

But what happens is, the plant is actually within these vines, and it's only the flower that flowers very rarely, but when it does, it is huge.

The main ecological role of that flower is in pollination, and it attracts carrion flies with its rotting meat scent.

So carrion would normally be dead animals that attract other species to feed on them.

So the rotting meat scent is a genuine, real thing.

And this plant is in danger from the deforestation due to oil palm plantations as well.

Another consequence is that carbon emissions increase due to deforestation.

So this is because forests are carbon sinks.

When trees are removed and replaced with less dense plantations, there is less carbon absorbed from the atmosphere.

So removing these trees is worsening global warming, as it is removing the carbon sink to absorb that carbon.

Unfortunately, it's even worse than that.

Some of the tropical rain forest cleared for oil plant plantations were growing in peatlands.

Peat is partially decayed plant material.

Peatland stays waterlogged for long periods, which slows down decomposition.

Peatlands hold more carbon per hectare than tropical rainforest, but they are drained for oil palm plantations.

So the ground underneath the forest in some locations holds even more carbon than the trees above.

Probably knew about the trees holding carbon, and that being quite important for protecting us from global warming.

But actually, it's quite rare that people know about the peats and this carbon storage underneath the forest, and the fact that that is so, so important in protecting us from global warming, because it holds so much carbon.

Indonesia and Malaysia are two of the leading palm oil producers.

We mentioned this one.

They have already converted millions of hectares of peat swamp forest into plantations.

So peat is a real at-risk carbon store, which not very many people know about.

Some palm oil producers use fire to clear land, and this releases all the stored carbon into the atmosphere.

So this is an even worse way of setting up a palm oil plantation.

You can see on the satellite image on the left-hand side here, there are dozens of fires, outlined in red, and they're burning across the island of New Guinea in late September in 2015.

So if you look really closely, you might need to zoom in.

It's scary, the number of fires that there are there.

And all of those fires are producing carbon, which is being added to our atmosphere.

Right, time for check for understanding.

Let's go back to Andeep's comment, which, at the time, made a lot of sense.

He said, "Surely, it is not too much of a problem, though, as the forest is still being replaced by trees, so habitats and carbon storage are not entirely lost." Which answer is the best to explain this to him? Is it A, B, or C? Let's have a look.

A, it is only a problem when the forest is burnt to clear it, then carbon is released into the atmosphere.

B, plantations are less dense and less diverse, meaning the trees have less capacity to store carbon and support an ecosystem.

C, there is not enough food for animals, but the carbon storage is replaced when oil palm trees grow.

Yes, it's B, plantations are less dense and less diverse, meaning the trees have less capacity to store carbon and support an ecosystem.

Andeep says, "There must be some benefits, otherwise there is no way this would happen." Well, the benefits are economic.

There's a lot of demand for oil, as it is used in so many products, and it is the cheapest option for processed food manufacturing.

Income is provided for the people that work in the plantations, and also the government benefits from the taxes paid by the workers and by the companies who own those plantations.

So money is made from this.

This is why it happens.

However, in some oil farm plantations, forced labour and even child labour have been documented.

Here's an account from an oil palm plantation worker, "I came here hoping to earn enough to send money home, but the work is brutal.

I spray chemicals without proper protection and live in crowded huts.

I can't leave, not without risking arrest or worse.

My passport was taken when I arrived.

I haven't been paid in months, and I owe money to the recruiter." In addition to this, in Indonesia, over 2,330 indigenous communities have seen their forest cleared for oil plant plantations, stripping them of the land that they have lived on for centuries.

So indigenous communities are communities that have traditionally lived in that area for a long time.

Here is an account from someone from an indigenous community who's had this experience, "We were told we'd get schools and clinics if we moved into the palm plantations, but they never came.

We are now stuck among rows of trees, with barely enough land to grow what we need or gather from the forest.

Our rivers are polluted, our forests are gone, and companies never asked us, they just came.

We lost not just land, but crafts, foods, medicines, and who we are.

There is nothing we can do now.

The law doesn't protect us or the forest, it protects the plantation owners." Time for check for understanding now.

True or false, oil palm plantations benefit the local communities by creating jobs? I would say false.

Yes, there are some jobs created, but there's more to it, isn't there? So why have I said, "False?" You may have agreed with me.

You might have said, "True." But now, why have I said, "False?" Yeah, so those jobs are created, these jobs are often exploitative.

In addition, indigenous communities could lose their land and culture.

Task time now, can you please make a spider diagram of the consequences of oil palm plantations? You can see the example that I have here, and I've put one example around the outside.

So I've put loss of forest for indigenous communities is one the consequences.

The second part of this task is to categorise each of those consequences into social, environmental, or economic consequences.

So I've put a key on the left-hand side to show you how I'm going to do this.

So I've done this using colours.

You can do this categorising in any way you like.

Just make sure you make a key.

Pause the video now to give yourself time to do the task.

Well done, everyone.

Let's take a look at some answers.

So this is my version of the spider diagram.

I've got some environmental consequences in green.

So we've got habitat destruction, threatens biodiversity and rare species, loss of carbon sinks due to peatland draining and deforestation, and finally, carbon released from fires used to clear the forest.

So those are my three environmental consequences.

On the left-hand side, at the top, I have put my two social consequences in purple, the loss of forest for the indigenous communities, and also forced labour and child labour.

I have my economic consequence at the bottom on the left, in black.

So we've got income for workers and taxes paid to the government.

Time for the second part of our lesson now.

We're going to look at sustainable alternatives for palm oil production.

Andeep looks now quite concerned.

"So should I boycott palm oil and make sure it is not in any food I buy or any products that I use?" Well, Andeep, actually, experts recommend supporting certified sustainable palm oil, as palm oil is the most land-efficient oil crop.

Replacing it with less efficient crops like sunflowers could actually cause more deforestation.

So palm oil's a good crop, 'cause we get a lot of oil out of a small area.

However, in order for it to be sustainable, it needs to be certified sustainable, and we're going to look into that in a little bit more detail at the moment.

Time for check for understanding.

Let's answer Andeep's question again.

"So should I boycott palm oil and make sure it is not in any food I buy or products I use?" Should he, A, boycott or palm oil, B, try to buy products that contains sunflower oil instead, or C, buy products that use certified sustainable palm oil? Well done, so it's C, we should be buying products that use certified sustainable palm oil if we want to try and solve this problem.

Actually, sunflowers require a larger area for the amount of oil they produce, so it is less sustainable and could create more deforestation.

Boycotting all palm oil, therefore, again, wouldn't be the best option.

Sustainable certification encourages producers to avoid deforestation, protects peatlands, and respects workers' rights.

So if you buy a product that says that the palm oil is sustainable, then these three factors should be taken into account when producing that palm oil.

Sustainable certification requires any new sustainable oil palm plantations to be built on already cleared or degraded land, not pristine rainforest.

This avoids habitat destruction through deforestation, which is good for biodiversity, and it reduces carbon emissions as well.

Some big plantations get around this requirement by certifying only the sections of their plantation that would be classed as sustainable.

So you can see this plantation on the left-hand side, which has been used to illustrate.

In the background, you can see that the plantation is not sustainable, but in the foreground, we can see there is a section which has been certified as sustainable.

This brings the risk that with some companies, all the palm oil produced is mixed, and then mislabeled as certified sustainable, even though sections, potentially quite large sections, of their plantations are not certified sustainable.

Time for a check for understanding now.

True or false, certified sustainable palm oil is all produced in an environmental way? Unfortunately, yeah, this is false.

Why is this the case? So big plantations get around rules on deforestation of pristine rainforest by certifying only the sections their plantation that would be classed as sustainable.

And sometimes selling all the oil palm produced as certified.

Sustainable farms often attempt to increase oil yield by using better crop varieties and precision farming tools, such as drones, satellite imagery, and AI.

These strategies are effective and can increase yields by 15 to 25%.

This reduces pressure to expand into forests.

So, yields, remember, is the amount of oil produced from that area of plantation.

So you want a high yield, you want as much oil as possible from the smallest possible area, so that you don't have to deforest more land in order to create plantations.

The problem with this is that some companies actually just find it cheaper to expand into forested land than to invest in yield improvements.

The solution, though, is that some governments and NGOs, NGOs means non-governmental organisations, often charities, are now funding replanting programmes with better crop varieties.

So that takes the cost away from the company, and encourages the companies to actually take on the sustainable approaches.

Time for a check for understanding now.

Which of the following can improve palm oil yield? Is it A, better varieties, B, drone use, C, AI use, or D, satellite images? You can pick more than one answer.

Yes, it's all four, isn't it? All of these can help to improve palm oil yield.

Time for our final task.

I would like you to evaluate how sustainable certified sustainable palm oil is.

I'd like you to include the benefits and the loopholes of banning pristine forest clearing.

I'd like you to include the benefits and the disadvantages of increasing the yield.

And I'd like you to conclude, say, write me one sentence just to sum up your arguments, what is the conclusion that you are drawing from this? The video now to give yourself time to do this.

Well done, everyone.

Let's take a look at some answers.

Here, we have a model answer.

Compare it to your own, see if there's anything you'd like to add.

Your answer won't be identical, obviously, but you can edit your answer based on this to improve it.

Right, sustainable certification encourages producers to avoid deforestation, as new plantations should not be built on pristine forest.

This avoids habitat destruction and reduces carbon emissions.

Big plantations can get around this by certifying only the section of their plantation that would be class as sustainable, and sometimes selling all the palm oil produced as certified sustainable.

Sustainable farms often attempt to increase oil yield by using better crop varieties and precision farming tools.

These strategies are effective and can increase yields by 15 to 25%, reducing pressure to expand into forests.

However, some companies find it cheaper to expand into forested land than to invest in yield improvements.

Therefore, some governments and NGOs are now funding replanting programmes with better crop varieties.

Experts recommend supporting certified sustainable palm oil, as it is the most land-efficient oil crop.

Well done, everyone.

It's time for our summary now.

Palm oil is sourced from the fruits of the oil palm tree.

An area of rainforest nearly the size of Greater London has been deforested in under a decade for palm oil plantations.

Plantations are less dense and less diverse, meaning the trees have less capacity to store carbon and support an ecosystem.

Oil palm plantations are associated with a loss of forest for indigenous communities, forced labour, and child labour.

Experts recommend supporting certified sustainable palm oil, as it is the most land-efficient oil crop.

I hope you found it interesting, investigating this issue today.

I will see you next time.

Goodbye.