First Reported RSPO Certified Palm Oil in North America

Posted March 4, 2011 in The Understory

Last week, a huge milestone for the palm oil industry went largely unnoticed: The first ever batch of 100% Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)-certified, segregated palm oil made it’s…

New UBS Policy Fizzles

Posted February 3, 2011 in The Understory

‘Tis the season for new bank environmental and social policies! Last Friday, UBS was the latest to announce an updated “Responsible Banking” policy. Let’s see how it stacks up. First…

Slave Labor For Palm Oil Production

Posted December 7, 2010 in The Understory

Despite the 7.2 magnitude earthquake, tsunami and successive volcanic eruptions from Mt. Merapi this November, I made my way to Indonesia to attend the 2010 Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil…

Rainforests Or Big Business: Who Will Win In Jakarta?

Posted October 14, 2010 in The Understory

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) 8th Annual Meeting is coming up November 8-11th in Jakarta. RAN’s rainforest agribusiness team will be there. Indonesia is the world’s 3rd largest…

Massive Banners Dropped on Cargill, Grain Exchange Skyway

Posted September 23, 2010 in The Understory

Despite state-wide flood warnings, the skies opened for just enough time to allow five RAN activists to hang two billboard sized banners off of a 3rd street skyway during morning…

Cargill Back Pedals on Rainforest Track

Posted September 2, 2010 in The Understory

In response to Cargill’s recent announcement stating that they would ignore their promise to take action on widely known rainforest destroyer Sinar Mas, RAN sent out a press release calling…

Cargill’s Lies About Palm Oil

Posted May 27, 2010 in The Understory

In response to our report on Cargill’s problems with palm oil in Indonesia released earlier this month, Cargill has been denying that it clears and burns rainforest for palm oil…