Are palm oil plantations growing in Indonesia and Malaysia?
In Indonesia and Malaysian Borneo, industrial plantation expansion and associated deforestation have declined since approximately 2011 (refs. 21, 22 ). However, smallholder plantings developed to support demand by industrial palm oil mills may be increasing.
Where does oil palm come from?
Oil palm originates from equatorial Africa where it has been cultivated for millennia, but it is now widely grown in Southeast Asia. Between 2008 and 2017, oil palm expanded globally at an estimated rate of 0.7 Mha per year 2, and palm oil is the leading and cheapest edible oil in much of Asia and Africa.
What is oil palm cultivation?
Oil palm cultivation involves the introduction and spread of invasive species, including the oil palm itself (noted in Madagascar and Brazil’s Atlantic Forests 47 ), as well as non-native cover crops and nitrogen-fixing plants (for example, Mucuna bracteata or Calopogonium caeruleum ).
Does oil palm contribute to deforestation in Malaysia?
In Malaysian Borneo, oil palm was an important contributor to overall deforestation 16. Here, new plantations accounted for 50% of deforestation from 1972 to 2015 when using a five-year cut-off to link deforestation and oil palm development 17 (Fig. 3, Supplementary Fig. 2 and Supplementary Table 3 ).