Talk:Oil palm

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Some of the articles regarding palm oil's role in environmental damage are inaccurate and biased. 'Cruel oil' for example is an over-generalisation and an overly emotional document not based on sound reasearch. There is also an ulterior motive of promoting soybean oils. It should be removed from the link's page.

The destruction of the rainforests in South-east Asia (situations vary considerably in Indonesia and Malaysia) is caused by certain irresponsible individuals, NOT palm oil itself.

Palm oil is a cheap source of calorie that can combat hunger in the developing.

For more info on Malaysian oil palm industry's role in developing a sustainable agriculture system, read world.http://www.mpoc.org.my/CEO_to_Observer.asp

[edit] Palm Oil and its real effects...

Palm oil has an undeservedly bad press. Admittedly there are instances where palm oil plantations are built on rainforest that has already been logged however there are also plantations which pay really very large sums of money indeed on conservation projects as well as leaving large areas of their plantations free as conservation areas. This is often a much better form of conservation than other areas because the oil palm plantations have the rescources to prevent poaching, illegal logging and slash and burn farming in their conservation areas. Other conservation areas however often suffer from government corruption and lack of available rescources from non government organisations which prevents them from having sufficient rescources to prevent the above issues. Also palm oil plantations provide a large source of well paid jobs for local communities as well as direct and indirect infrastructure (for example many companies provide roads, schools and hospitals which are open to local communities, or for another example internet access and phone lines become available to surrounding communities because such services are required by oil palm companies). The article does not appear to show this side of palm oil.

[edit] Social and environmental impacts

To the previous 2 unsigned entries and anyone else that comes across ths page. I have just added a very brief section on the social and environmental impacts of palm oil plantations. At this stage it is very incomplete and will be added to at a later stage. The aim is to make that section adhere to Wikipedias Neutral point of view NPOV, some previous edits by unregistered contributors have removed any references to deleterious effects of OP plantations. I would appreciate if this didn't happen again - if you feel my addition have a bias - please discuss them with me and point me to relevant sources/literature. Most of the sources cited so far are website - the aim will be to improve my sources and rely as much as possible on peer-review independent journals rather than grey literature and web sites. However, this will not always be possible. Sepilok2007 (talk) 09:56, 29 November 2007 (UTC) To add; effects on biodiversity (need also to cover type of habitat being converted) carbon balance & peatswamp issue biodiesel +/- for environment RSPO Sepilok2007 09:01, 1 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Facts'n figures

Someone should find all contradictions in this article. Yield is said to be 22 % or 30 % for pericarp oil. There are probably more errors. --Boongoman (talk) 20:54, 30 March 2008 (UTC)