FELDA joins Faces of Palm Oil campaign
Small farmers write to EU Energy Ministers criticizing EU ban
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Today, the Malaysian Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA) condemned Europe’s campaign to ban Palm Oil, highlighting the discrimination by the EU against over 100,000 small farmers involved in FELDA cooperatives.
Tan Sri Shahrir Abdul Samad, Chairman of FELDA, issued the following statement:
“The proposed EU ban on Palm Oil biofuels, under the Renewable Energy Directive, is discriminatory and must be removed. The 112,635 FELDA small farmers in Malaysia, and their families, demand a clear and direct clarification from the EU, that Palm Oil biofuels will not be banned. The Malaysian palm oil industry is an economic lifeline for small farmers; it has lifted their families from poverty to prosperity. I will continue to defend the interest of our small farmer community and ensure justice for them in the global markets.”
On Monday, the 28 EU Energy Ministers of the Council met in Brussels. The meeting came as Dato’ Haji Aliasak Bin Haji Ambia, President of the National Association of SmallHolders (NASH) wrote to Europe’s Energy Ministers, stating “The proposed ban on Palm Oil biofuels is the worst kind of discrimination […] Rich country feedstocks will continue to be supported by MEPs; but poor small farmers in rural Malaysia will be shut out of the EU market.
The letter from Dato’ Aliasak highlights comments from the Malaysian Prime Minister, Dato’ Sri Najib Abdul Razak earlier in 2017, when the Prime Minister warned that “any boycott of Palm Oil would lead to retaliation”.
Faces of Palm Oil is a joint project of the National Association of Small Holders (NASH), the Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA), the Dayak Oil Palm Planters Association (DOPPA), the Sarawak Land Consolidation and Rehabilitation Authority (SALCRA) and the Malaysian Palm Oil Council (MPOC) that seeks to advocate on behalf of Malaysian small farmers. To learn more, visit FacesOfPalmOil.org.