Palm oil has been in the spotlight due to the damage it is causing to rainforests around the world, leaving Orangutan’s homeless and at risk of dying.
According to Greenpeace, Mondelez – a food giant behind the production of Cadbury’s chocolate, Ritz crackers and Oreo cookies – are responsible the destruction of 70,000 hectares of rainforest – 25,000 of which are home to orangutans in Indonesia.
The organisation goes on to share that Mondelez cleared the 70,000 hectares in a two-year period – between 2015-2017.
This is because the brand is sourcing palm oil – an industry which has been accused of being guilt of exploitation of workers, land grabbing, illegal deforestation, child labour, and forest fires.
Mondelez has explained that it is ‘actively working with suppliers to ensure palm oil is fully traceable’, and they the company is ‘committed to eradicating deforestation in the palm oil supply’.
Richard George, Greenpeace UK Forests Campaigner, comments: “Mondelez’s new tagline, revealed in September, is ‘snacking made right’, but there’s nothing right about palm oil produced by killing orangutans and fuelling climate change.”
George continues: “This must be a wake- up call to Mondelez and other household brands to take action, starting with cutting off the dirtiest palm oil trader of all, Wilmar, until it can prove its palm oil is clean. Ultimately, if big brands can’t find enough clean palm oil to make their products, they need use less.