The Tropical Landscapes Summit 2015, hosted by the Indonesia Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM), was held in Jakarta, Indonesia on 27 to 28 April. This conference enabled key stakeholders to explore and engage in various plenary discussions that lead to climate change mitigation initiatives. RGE Vice-Chairman, Bey Soo Khiang, spoke at the plenary session on “The Challenge of Food Security for All”.

Palm Oil is the most extensively used vegetable oil in the world due to its yield that is more than four times that of other oil crops such as rapeseed, sunflower and soybean oil. The oil palm industry in Indonesia has contributed significantly to export foreign exchange, tax, and employment, and regional economic development. Indonesia supplies more than half of the world’s demand which is expected to double by 2020, which begs the question of how can the increasing demand for palm oil for food security be met while ensuring that the production meets sustainability criteria.

Asian Agri, the palm oil business group in RGE founded by entrepreneur Sukanto Tanoto, will continue to partner the plasma smallholders whom the company has been supporting under the plasma scheme since more than two decades ago. Currently, most plasma plantations are due for replanting and Asian Agri will partner them to provide financial assistance and replant the best seeds. As 42% of Indonesia’s oil palm plantations belong to independent smallholders, Asian Agri will also seek to engage these independent smallholders to impart knowledge about sustainable plantation management and help to improve their yields. 

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