This project is designed to support independent smallholder inclusion in sustainable palm oil supply chains.
New, mandatory corporate due diligence requirements – including the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) which requires certain products, including palm oil, being placed on and exported from the EU market to be deforestation free – bring barriers to market access for smallholder farmers. The burden to demonstrate full traceability and compliance at smallholder production sites may encourage companies to source from large palm oil plantations instead.
Factors 'interrupting' a fully traceable sustainable palm oil supply chain, from initial production by smallholders to downstream buyers, will be explored in this project. Guidance and recommendations will be developed for different actors in the supply chain to eliminate bottlenecks and strengthen relationships between these actors, which is essential for any effective, fair, and impactful due diligence process.