Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Palm oil is often associated with tropical deforestation above all else. However, this is only one side of the story, as agricultural scientists from the University of Göttingen and the IPB University Bogor (Indonesia) show in a new study.
[...] For the study, the researchers evaluated results from over 30 years of research on the environmental, economic and social consequences of oil palm cultivation in Africa, Asia and Latin America. They combined the results from the international literature with their own data from Indonesia, which they have been collecting since 2012 as part of an interdisciplinary German-Indonesian Collaborative Research Centre (CRC 990). Indonesia is the largest palm oil producer and exporter in the world. A large proportion of the palm oil produced in Indonesia is exported to Europe and the U.S., where it is used by the food, fuel and cosmetics industries.
The research data show that the expansion of oil palm in some regions of the world—especially Indonesia and Malaysia—contributes significantly to tropical deforestation and the loss of biodiversity. Clearing forestland also leads to substantial carbon emissions and other environmental problems. "However, banning palm oil production and trade would not be a sustainable solution," says Professor Matin Qaim, agricultural economist at the University of Göttingen and first author of the study. "The reason is that oil palm produces three times more oil per hectare than soybean, rapeseed, or sunflower. This means that if palm oil was replaced with alternative vegetable oils, much more land would be needed for cultivation, with additional loss of forests and other natural habitats."
Banning palm oil would also have negative economic and social consequences in the producing countries. "It is often assumed that oil palm is only grown on large industrial plantations," says Qaim. "In reality, however, around half of the world's palm oil is produced by smallholder farmers. Our data show that oil palm cultivation increases profits and incomes in the small farm sector, in addition to raising wages and creating additional employment for rural laborers. Although there are incidences of conflicts over land, overall the oil palm boom has significantly reduced rural poverty in Indonesia and other producing countries."
Journal Reference:
Matin Qaim, et al. Environmental, Economic, and Social Consequences of the Oil Palm Boom [open], (DOI: 10.1146/annurev-resource-110119-024922)
Previously:
(2018-12-18) Indonesia: A Country That Became "Crazy Rich"
(2018-12-01) Palm Oil was Supposed to Help Save the Planet. Instead it Unleashed a Catastrophe.
(2017-03-15) A Makeover for the World's Most Hated Crop
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 21 2020, @11:21PM (6 children)
Have less kids, educate the uneducated so they have less kids in future generations.
As long as we have an increasing world population, this kind of resource competition will continue. Not mentioned, but in the same area are large industrial plantations of rubber trees (originally a tree from South America), so the choice might also be palm oil for processed food, vs. natural rubber for tires (synthetic rubber is not a 100% replacement for natural rubber.)
(Score: 3, Insightful) by takyon on Friday May 22 2020, @03:14AM (4 children)
Replace cars with drones and Zoom meetings, eliminate rubber tire demand.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 22 2020, @04:22AM (3 children)
Replacing cars does very little these days (in USA)...light vehicle sales are primarily pickups and SUVs.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday May 22 2020, @05:06AM (2 children)
Generation COVID™ won't drive, travel, eat out, shop IRL/offline, or go to work. No need for cars, pickups, SUVs, minivans, or bicycles.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 22 2020, @12:37PM (1 child)
> ... or bicycles.
Time will tell about the future need for rubber tires, but as a counter-example bicycle sales are up,
https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2020/05/01/bicycling-booms-during-lockdown-but-theres-a-warning-from-history/#5420390741cf [forbes.com]
Perhaps a fad, but I'm hoping this fad has some staying power (I'm a cyclist, as well as car owner).
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday May 22 2020, @12:44PM
Damn, we need a second stimulus check. Err, I mean a second and more deadly pandemic. Stay the eff home.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by bradley13 on Friday May 22 2020, @05:16AM
This. The fundamental problem is overpopulation. Most of the world has now stabilized. Asia now needs to reduce its population. Africa, however, has an absolutely frightening population pyramid - massive growth.
Everyone is somebody else's weirdo.