Raslene

It’s April 30th today. I am having my last vegan bakmi and cakes eat out now, as most shops and restaurants will be closed tomorrow. Normally, business is running as usual though it is a public holiday. At first, I thought it was progressive that people started to take Mayday seriously so they chose to close the business tomorrow. I was wrong, it turned out it was just the Eid holiday!

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Mayday is still on May 1st but this year’s Eid Fitr is on May 2nd. And it’s a rare occasion to see no workers marching in solidarity, they might be preparing their last day of fasting, getting ready for the prayer and celebration tomorrow.
 

After 2 years of the pandemic, they may prefer to celebrate Eid at home with their beloved families. This year is a warm and almost-back-to-normal Eid to memorize. Excited that finally, you can enjoy the cooking of your mom or grandma, renewing big family portraits, and many more joyful things without feeling anxious that another critical wave of covid is spying on as soon as D+7 of Eid.

 

Also, how good was that the weather was so nice, a week-long of sunny days. Extra hot ones, I would say, that eventually was indeed warned by The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) as a heat wave. As quoted from BMKG: “Entering the dry season, BMKG urges the public to be aware of hot or scorching temperatures during the day until mid-May 2022. BMKG also noted that the maximum temperature measured during the period 1-7 May 2022 ranged from 33-36 °C.”

 

Not just that, at the same time, at the end of April and early May, a heatwave was happening with record-breaking temperatures reaching 43-46 °C in India and 50°C in Pakistan. This heatwave had damaging impacts on India’s wheat crop. Indian wheat usually goes to Indonesia, UAE, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. This sudden spike in the price of wheat posed a threat to India’s food security. Especially with the loss of Ukraine volumes that exacerbates the issues. So, the world’s second largest wheat producer announced a ban on wheat exports from May 13th, as reported by the South China Morning Post.

Imagine the flour that is made into kue lebaran (baked goods) and the fried goods might be hard to find on the market, if the wheat export ban were happening at the same time as the Indonesian palm oil exports ban that happened on April 28th. Or if the wheat inflation was out of control just like the way Indonesian palm oil did in the past few months.

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Indonesian Palm Oil

Palm oil is one of the main contributors to the Indonesian economy. They grow in 25 provinces, which account for about 15.98 million hectares of plantation size in 2021, as declared by the Ministry of Agriculture. Exporting 30.5 million tonnes of oil per year, this number is fulfilling about 60% of the world’s demand.

After experiencing the slow-but-sure domestic cooking oil shortages and food inflation for months since October 2021, the export ban in April 2022 was imposed to help address these issues. But owners of small plantations in the town of Kampar, Riau province, began feeling the brunt of the export ban even before it took effect, as the ban policy was widened to include crude and refined palm oil.

 

One farmer said that the ban has led to a drop in palm fruit prices, forcing farmers to cut fertilizer use as palm fruits get cheaper and fertiliser prices have risen 30% since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It will further reduce palm fruit harvest and exacerbate the oil shortage. Ahmad Dailami, a palm oil farmer said, “What we get paid now has been reduced by almost half. Yesterday we still got a price of Rp 3.500 (US$ 0.24), today we are only getting Rp 1.500 (US$ 0.10).”

 

With the current low price of this palm oil fruit, it’s difficult for them. These farmers don’t even want to harvest the fruits. While palm oil storage facilities are also no longer able to receive the farmer’s fruits because warehouses are full and have run out of space because of the export ban policy. During Eid, people couldn’t afford to buy clothes for their children. Traditionally during Eid, people have to buy meat, clothes, and household needs, which means a lot of expenses to spend. This year’s Eid is no longer lovely and spiritually meaningful with these farmers protesting for their welfare.

 

On May 23rd, Indonesia resumed palm oil exports, ending a three-week ban, as the domestic supply increased. The government says it will impose a new policy to ensure 10 million tonnes of oil remain in the country. Which doesn’t really have any positive impact, due to the disruption in production and the change of demand behavior leading to the price soaring even higher. It was said as part of an attempt to bring down soaring prices, but until today, June 13th, the price is still not getting any lower. This means the government didn't really see the domestic and distribution problem in the industry but was too focused on the supply and revenue numbers. 

 

The smallholder of oil palm farmers was protesting against the rising cost of the palm oil export ban. And with some distorted fact-telling, the farmers were being accused of being the cause of price inflation and other negative stigmas. While the one who makes it hard for everyone is the big corporations, who hold the distribution and pricing power. People on the consumer's end might have missed this blindspot.

 

The Aftermath

Along with the good and bad news above, palm oil is indeed a really good vegetable oil. It's cheap. It's shelf-stable. It has natural preservative qualities. Oil palm trees are productive, evergreen, and perennial. And the palm oil industry has lifted millions from poverty. Sustainable wise? The palm oil itself is sustainable. Too bad, it's planted in a way that's caused a lot of environmental damage or is simply unethical. Most companies choose to deforest new areas instead of working on the soil rehab or plantation care after the end of the productive cycle of land. And we know deforestation is one big issue most NGOs try to fight today. 

 

Standing almost side by side with other agricultural needs, its deforestation contributes to as much as a quarter of all tropical deforestation: soy, palm, cattle, and timber. Means, the palm oil industry is not the only one we need to put critical cynicism into. Additionally, because the corporations and manufacturers who are responsible for these are not likely to face their responsibilities. 

 

Since 2009, ISPO (Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil) is targeting to raise awareness of producing sustainable palm oil, increasing the competition level of Indonesian palm oil in the world market, and supporting Indonesia’s commitment to conserving natural resources and the environment. While in fact, per 31 March 2021, they only have marked 755 plantations that were ISPO certified. With the 668 plantations are privately owned, 67 others are state-owned, and the rest 20 are people owned. Surface-wise, in total, it is only 5.8 million hectares compared to 15.98 million hectares.

 

Worse than deforestation, companies took lands from the indigenous without giving them their rights or proper compensation. It has also impacted communities and the workers that have been employed to harvest the materials. Since the cheap price might not come from a single cause: the magnificent productivity of oil palm; but the slaved labor?

 

With an estimated 7.6 million women working in the industry, they face physical and health problems, hardships, exploitation, from skin rashes, and hip pain, to sexual abuse. Men workers face hardships at work too. If we are willing to pay more for the products we use, does it help to let these workers have a better work-life? Can we protect the women workers in palm oil and any other industry? How long can we survive if we have to pay more for the products we use, while the incomes stay the same? Do we have to surrender to the exploitation all the people face?

 

Resolution like lowering the market and user demand sounds unrealistic as the numbers of human beings are increasing, the needs and demands will go along with the number. If we couldn't find better oil to alternate the superiority of palm oil, should we reduce the usage of palm oil by living more consciously and sustainably? What is living consciously and sustainably, really?

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Or, perhaps, we might want to try to find the answer within ourselves. How do we consume [things or please insert something particular]?
Why are we consuming it? And where is the sourcing from and who is growing our materials? How do we get it? After the consumption, how do we handle the waste, or where does the waste go? 

In short, investigate like a DEA agent, and know your stuff before you buy it, like really.

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June 2022

Notes from the writer:
This essay is a part of GEDUP from DELTA X: Conversations and Collaborations with Mekong Cultural Hub.

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