Derived from the oil palm tree’s fruit, it is edible and non-toxic. It is however heavily used in products like lipsticks, shampoos and most hand and body products. In other words, lots of palm oil is needed to support the production of these consumables, and here is where the problem lies.
Palm oil is cultivated in unsustainable ways, putting entire communities, orangutan species, and other wildlife at risk. The orangutan population has decreased by at least half due to the harvesting and destruction of entire plantations. In Borneo, approximately 5000 orangutans are killed every year due to human activities that include mass deforestation.
With entire forests being destroyed, we are seeing a domino effect of loss.
Without the presence of trees, carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases, which in turn accelerates global warming. Since there are no trees there are no active root systems on the soil, which means the rain washes away nutrients, which in turn affects farmers who result to chemical fertilisers to enhance the soil.
