IOI Censured by Industry Group for Environmental Violations

04/11/2011

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil, an industry body promoting eco-friendly palm oil, has censured IOI Corp., Malaysia's second largest planter. A grievance panel investigated and found breaches of membership obligations after environmental activists accused IOI of draining peatlands and engaging in land disputes with local communities in Sarawak. The company has 28 days to deliver a proposal to resolve standing issues. Should it fail, the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil threatened further sanctions against the company, "which may include the suspension of [its] license for new transactions involving Certified Sustainable Palm Oil materials including GreenPalm certificates." According to the group, the investigation came after IOI continued operations after a March 2010 court decision that held that the plantations were on community lands. For the full story, see http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/07/us-malaysia-palm-ioi-idUSTRE73620520110407.