Speaking at its two day meeting in London earlier this month, the organisation’s European Director of Outreach & Engagement, Danielle Morley, tells CosmeticsDesign-Europe.com that it is time for the issue to become more visible to the European market.
“The RSPO cannot improve communication on sustainable palm oil by itself,” she says.
As a membership organisation, Danielle says the key objective for RSPO and from the two day meet is to “build the community amongst the membership so it is more aligned on messaging and we can all work together to leverage greater impact through using member’s communication channels.”
Up the ante
The two day meeting in Southbank, London, brought together 35 RSPO members from across the supply chain, as well as NGO members, to a workshop to discuss the communication strategy and plan how industry is going to be much more visible to the European market, and build much more credible engagement plans and communication tools.
The cosmetic industry constitutes an important share of the palm oil market, especially of palm oil kernels, with approximately 70% of formulations containing some form of the ingredient.
The RSPO has thus been engaging actively with the industry players in Europe, notably the cosmetics industry, to ensure that they understand the importance of using Certified Sustainable Palm Oil, and also inform consumers of its presence in the product, as well as the importance of using CSPO.
Mission possible
RSPO’s mission is to address social and environmental issues through the development of credible global standards for sustainable palm oil now known as the RSPO Principles and Criteria.
The RSPO Principles and Criteria were drafted through an open and intensive dialogue between the seven stakeholder groups represented within the RSPO, and all decisions are made by consensus across these 7 groups:
- oil palm growers,
- palm oil processors and traders,
- consumer goods manufacturers,
- retailers,
- banks/investors,
- environmental/nature conservation NGOs, and
- social/developmental NGOs.
“RSPO has been working actively to make sustainable palm oil the norm,” says the membership organisation.
“An important challenge it has been facing today is the discrepancy between the supply of Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) and the demand for CSPO, and the need to ensure continued commitment from growers.”