As you will have seen in documentaries and online, palm oil is a big and complex issue. Cultivating it has caused deforestation on a huge scale in Indonesia and Malaysia, drastically affecting orangutan populations, but a total boycott isn’t the answer.
If you’re concerned about the impact your buying choices might have on orangutans and their forests, you might wonder where to even begin in knowing what you should spend your money on, especially at times like Easter where chocolate fills the shelves and there are so many labels to read and understand.
An easy way to research which retailers and manufacturers are committed to removing deforestation from their products is by using Giki, a fantastic bar-code scanning app. If you’d rather have something on paper, this guide from Act for Wildlife is great. You can also check for logos from Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil and Green Palm Label – this article from Twycross Zoo shows you what to look out for!
Finally, if chocolate eggs aren’t really your thing, you could help orangutans this Easter weekend by joining in with Orangutan Relief or donating the money you would otherwise have spent on an Easter egg. Click here to find out more.
Photograph by Andrew Walmsley.
You can help protect Sumatra's Orangutans. Click to get updates
