Trends surrounding vegetable oil & the palm oil certification system

5.Concepts of certification systems

In addition to the palm oil certification system, there are numerous certification systems throughout the world. Each of these systems is based on the characteristics and history of respective products. It is difficult to judge the extent to which these certification systems fulfill their intended purpose. In that respect, there is an international need for fair and impartial judging by a third party. However, for environmental certification systems, there is currently no evaluation system operated by an international certification authority that possesses higher-level objectivity for checking the appropriateness of certification systems.
As the next best measure, there are cases in which prominent NGOs and other similar organizations evaluate and ensure the objectivity of levels and audits for certification standards. However, when such NGOs are from western countries, they may lack a sufficient understanding of current conditions in Asia. In particular, a solid understanding of unique labor and environmental conditions in Asia is required in order to evaluate the production environment and labor environment for palm oil. A variety of other current issues must be considered; for example, when compared to large-scale plantation companies, it is difficult for small-scale farmers and small-scale plantations (small holders) to obtain certification due to their significant disadvantage in financial power and manpower. This is true regardless of the level of environmental support achieved by these small holders.

In terms of palm oil certification, mitigating the risk of being criticized over environmental response has been a major factor mainly among western corporations that possess a global supply chain. Corporations that possess global supply chains with a B2C focus incur certification expenses in order to avoid this issue, and it can be said that these expenses are commensurate with the amount of risk. However, in Japan, there is currently a low level of social awareness for issues related to palm oil. As such, it is difficult for the majority of Japanese food corporations focusing mainly on the domestic market to shift expenses incurred for certification into the prices paid by consumers.
Therefore, when recommending some type of certification in Japan, it is necessary for the government and private sectors to work together in order to increase public understanding for the meaning and role of certification. Furthermore, since certification system standards are expected to lead to a significant increase in cost, there is also the need for government guidance in terms of shifting an appropriate amount of the incurred expenses onto the retail price paid by consumers.

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