Increasing demand for palm oil and expansion of the sector in frontier areas, including in Central and South America, Central and West Africa, and Papua New Guinea, is continuing to fuel deforestation in some of the most biodiverse regions on the planet.

ZSL SPOTT annually assesses the commitments, disclosures and progress of the most impactful producers, processors and traders in the palm oil sector. To accelerate positive action in biodiversity hotspots, SPOTT is expanding the number of palm oil companies assessed in 2019 from 70 to 100.

As well as expanding coverage of companies in frontier areas for palm oil expansion, SPOTT is also expanding its assessments to evaluate the policies and practices of palm oil crushers and refiners. These actors are key nodes in the supply chain, processing large volumes of crude palm oil (CPO), crude palm kernel oil (CPKO) and palm kernels (PK) before it is sold to downstream buyers. As large buyers of palm oil, crushers and refiners with strong No Deforestation, No Peat, and No Exploitation (NDPE) policies can be a strategic lever to catalyse action further up the supply chain.

Selection of new palm oil companies for assessment in 2019

The 30 new companies on SPOTT this year include some of the largest palm oil crushers and refiners, as well as key producers in frontier regions. These companies were selected based on the following considerations:

  • Landbank size
  • Operations in frontier regions (i.e. Africa, Central and South America and Papua New Guinea)
  • Total volume of palm oil processed or traded
  • Evidence of unsustainable practices identified through media reports
  • Nominations by interested stakeholders

The 30 new palm oil companies for 2019 are:

  1. Allana Group
  2. Apical Group
  3. Belém Bioenergia Brasil (BBB)
  4. Bewani Oil Palm Plantations Limited
  5. BLD Plantations Bhd (Bintulu Lumber Development (BLD) Plantations)
  6. Carotino Group
  7. Danec SA
  8. Emami Agrotech Ltd.
  9. ENI SpA
  10. FELCRA Bhd
  11. GAMA Plantation
  12. Gokul Agro Resources Ltd.
  13. Grupo Jaremar
  14. Hayel Saeed Anam Group
  15. K Global Ventures Sdn. Bhd
  1. Kharisma Pemasaran Bersama Nusantara PT (PT. KPBN)
  2. LLC KRC EFKO-Kaskad
  3. Mewah Group
  4. NaturAceites S. A.
  5. PALMACEITE S.A.
  6. Peak Palm Oil PLC
  7. Permata Hijau Group
  8. Priya Gold Oils
  9. PTT Green Energy Pte. Ltd.
  10. Royal Industries Indonesia PT
  11. Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd.
  12. Sazean Holdings
  13. SIFCA Group
  14. Siva Group
  15. Synergy Oil Nusantara PT (PT SON)

ZSL has notified the selected companies regarding their forthcoming assessment on SPOTT. We will contact companies with their draft assessments in August, providing them with the opportunity to make further disclosures ahead of the final review and publication of assessments on SPOTT.

The assessments of 100 palm oil producers, processors and traders will be published on SPOTT in October 2019 ahead of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) 17th Annual Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RT17) in November.

For the 2018 assessment results, please visit the palm oil company assessments page.

* Update 24/10/2019: We are no longer assessing Noble Group as it has sold its palm oil plantation assets.