Fathin Ungku

SINGAPORE (Reuters – Indonesia’s massive palm oil industry was long a target for international green groups. However, the country is stepping up its defenses to combat growing anti-palm oils sentiments from a young generation in Indonesia.

Indonesia is the largest palm oil producer in the world. It’s also training educators and farmers.

Achmad Maulizal (corporate Division Head of BPDP), a government agency responsible for collecting export taxes said that the world must know about palm oil’s benefits at a Zoom media training workshop for farmers from Kalimantan.

The environmentalists linked palm oil (which is used in many products, including potato chips and soap) to the destruction of habitats, forest fires, and land clearing.

The third largest rainforest in the world is found in Indonesia. These vast forests are vital to mitigating the impacts of climate change and provide habitat for vulnerable species like rhinoceros, tigers, and orangutans.

In 2019, at least 1.6 Million Hectares of forests and other land was burned. Losses were estimated to be $5.2 Billion due to the choking fog that blanketed Indonesian and neighboring countries.

Greenpeace analyses show that around a third (33%) of Indonesian forest fires are located in palm and pulp regions.

However, the government is determined to promote the positive sides of the sector which has more than 15 million Indonesians employed and produces around 13% of Indonesia’s exports.

The BPDP and Smallholder Farmers Association have teamed up to give palm farmers media training programmes that allow them to write news articles, and contribute social media content about innovation in the palm industry.

The BPDP is also collaborating with Indonesia’s Teachers Association in order to offer workshops for teachers throughout the archipelago on “Unravel Myths and Facts” about palm oil.

Sukiter from Yogyakarta, who was a participant in the program, said that palm oil is, according to my understanding, the biggest foreign exchange earner. However, there are also negative information.

She stated that palm oil has many health benefits, based on the information she had given at the workshop.

YOUNG AND GREENE

Since the 1970s environmentalists have tried to promote anti-palm oils messages to young Indonesians. However, they have been open to receiving global appeals via social media and internet.

This has prompted Indonesia’s Palm Oil Association vice chair Toggar Sitanggang to tell Reuters that it is trying to combat what they perceive as biased information being spread at home.

Sitanggang stated that this makes it more pressing to find the right balance between all of the available information.

We need to share positive information with these kids and encourage them to question the information they receive.

The majority of Indonesians aged between nine and forty are called Gen Z (or Millennials)

Indikator Politik Indonesia conducted a poll of Gen Z and Millennials. 95% were at least somewhat concerned about climate change, which is significantly higher than the older age groups.

According to the study climate is second in importance after corruption.

Helga Angelina (30 years old) is the founder of Burgreens vegan restaurant chain and the manufacturer of Green Rebel Foods palm oil-free vegan mock-meats. She said that the shift towards eco-consciousness has led to her increased revenue 20 times over 2013 when she began.

Burgreens has now opened 15 stores in the area. Its mock meat production business supplies international food giants like Starbucks (NASDAQ:), and IKEA.

Helga stated that the Gen Z generation has been attracted to her company over the past two-years. “They are more focused by the environment,” Helga explained to Reuters. Her previous clientele included mostly expatriates with health concerns or high-ranking Indonesians.

Reuters interviewed some business owners who avoided palm oil. They said that while they were wary of the bad practices in this industry, they would be open to using sustainable palm oil if it became more affordable and less expensive.

Due to Indonesia’s increasing dependency on its domestic market for palm oil, it is more pressing to stop anti-palmoil sentiment.

According to official data, almost three quarters of Indonesia’s palm oil supplies are locally consumed, up from 23.4% for 2015.

Sitanggang from GAPKI said that this number could rise to 40% by 2025 and to 70% by 2030 if Indonesia fulfills its commitment to a 40% palm oil percentage in biodiesel.

Even though calls to completely boycott palm in Indonesia are not as strong as other countries’, the younger Indonesians want to see more sustainable options.

Melati Wijsen (19 years old) is a climate activist from Bali and the founder of Youthtopia.

It’s not some distant tale that people hear. These are real issues that we face every day. It is our reality.