JAKARTA, SAWIT INDONESIA – On 8 June 2016, a report was published by Rainforest Action Network (“RAN”), Organisasi Perjuangan dan Penguatan untuk Kerakyatan (“OPPUK”), and International Labour Rights Forum (“ILRF”) entitled, “The Human Cost of Conflict Palm Oil: Indofood, PepsiCo’s Hidden Link to Worker Exploitation in Indonesia.” on RAN’s website. The report contains defamatory claims and allegations related to labour issues in palm oil plantations in North Sumatra owned and operated by Indofood Agri Resources Ltd (“IndoAgri”), and its subsidiary PT PP London Sumatra Indonesia Tbk (“Lonsum”). No substantive facts, evidence or supporting documents have been provided to us to support these allegations.
In the official website, IndoAgri has reiterated the request for substantive evidence to support these allegations on multiple ocassions, but nothing beyond the intial report has been provided.
IndoAgri’s subsidiary Companies are members of The Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (“RSPO”), and Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (“ISPO”) bodies, and we are certifed under their sustainability Principles and Criteria, and remain compliant and certified. We have also received an award from the Indonesian Government in 2017, for zero accidents at 7 Palm Oil Mills and Estates in North Sumatra.
On 11 October 2016, RAN, ILRF and OPPUK lodged a complaint to the RSPO Complaints Panel and since then the allegations have been the subject of an ongoing review and audit by RSPO.
As a member of RSPO, we have complied fully and followed the process and procedures as outlined by the RSPO Complaints Panel, through the engagement with the RSPO independent auditor from Accreditation Services International (“ASI”) and SAI Global with regards to the resolution of this complaint. After the various Compliance Audits conducted by RSPO auditors, our plantations remain certified under RSPO, as no evidence of labour or human rights abuses has been found during the Compliance Audits.
In addition, we have also carried out our own review and actions to ensure the implementation of our policies, compliance to Government regulations and RSPO Principles and Criteria.
especially related to the labour allegations raised by RAN, OPPUK and ILRF. Following below are actions taken and a chronology of key events and timelines relating to these allegations.
Summary
1. We have complied fully with the RSPO Complaints Panel process, and subsequent audits of our North Sumatra mills and estates, confirm we remain compliant with the RSPO Principle and Criteria and RSPO certified.
2. We maintain our membership of RSPO and ISPO, and remain compliant and certified.
3. We have yet to receive any supporting evidence from the Complainants to substantiate their allegations, despite numerous requests.
4. We will follow the RSPO Complaint process for the settlement of the complaint and we are open to receive feedbacks as part of our on-going improvement process.
5. We are awaiting confirmation from RSPO on the final TOR’s for the Independent Field Verification, which RSPO has indicated will take place in April 2018.