From the Zoo to the Café: How the RSPO China Team is Building a Public Awareness Network for Responsible Consumption

By: Xiao Liu

In the global narrative of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), China is playing an increasingly important role. As the world’s second-largest importer of palm oil, every consumption choice made by China affects the breath and pulse of tropical rainforest thousands of miles away.

Between 2024 and 2026, the RSPO China team has embarked on a unique journey of exploration. We are no longer confined to traditional B2B communication; instead, we select to step out of the office, hand in hand with zoos, nature education institutions, foundations, and even commercial real estate, linking sustainable palm oil with orangutans and their habitats, and tell these stories of habitat conservation to Chinese consumers.

Part One: The “Voice” of Flagship Species—A Rainforest Classroom at the Zoo

To help the Chinese public understand the issue of palm oil, we need a messenger. In China, the orangutan, a species living in Southeast Asian rainforests, has become our best messenger for building an emotional connection with the public.

1. Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo: A Model of Deepened Cooperation

Since 2024, RSPO has established a deep strategic partnership with the Nanjing Hongshan Forest Zoo, marking a milestone in RSPO China’s efforts to promote public engagement and awareness of sustainable consumption.

• “Orangutan Caring Week” and the Natural Life Carnival: For two consecutive years, RSPO has been Invited to participate in the “Nature Life Carnival” and “Orangutan Caring Week”. we used offline markets and science education sessions to help tens of thousands of visitors understand that every responsible purchase is a step toward protecting the orangutans’ habitat.

•  A Dialogue Across Mountains and Seas: We launched the “Send a Postcard to the Tropical Rainforest” campaign. Over 100 postcards from Nanjing traveled across oceans, reaching Central Kalimantan and Java in Indonesia, bringing back replies from local independent smallholders and frontier staff at orangutan rescue centers. This emotional exchange spanning 3,500 kilometers gave life to otherwise technical supply chain standards, helping the public realise that even the smallest act of care can echo across the ocean.

Aprilia Trianas, a member of the RSPO Indonesia smallholder farmer team and the core coordinator behind the postcard initiative, says,”When I handed these postcards out with my hands, a profound sense of connection welled up inside me. Suddenly, I realised that even such a simple little gesture can build a bridge across cultural and linguistic divides between our two countries. It’s our shared goal of protecting orangutans and preserving tropical rainforest—our mutual understanding and common aspirations—that have brought us so closely together.”

• Strengthening Partnerships through an MOU Signing: On 3 November 2025, during  RT2025, RSPO officially signed a five-year MoU with Nanjing Hongshan Zoo to promote biodiversity conservation and advance sustainable palm oil initiatives. This marks RSPO’s formal inclusion of the Hongshan Zoo as a key partner in its sustainable development strategy in China.

• From Awareness to Action: In November 2025, RSPO supported the Hongshan Zoo in launching seven personal care products under its own brand WoodTopia, featuring certified sustainable palm oil (CSPO). This initiative transformed the concept of conservation into tangible products, making the otherwise invisible standards visible through the RSPO logo on packaging.

2. Shanghai, Fuzhou, Chongqing, Guangzhou: A Nationally Coordinated Effort to Amplify Conservation Voices

Leveraging the platform of the China Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the engaging online live-stream content and promotional materials for Orangutan Caring Week have been shared with more than 20 zoos across the country. As a result, “sustainable palm oil”—once a specialised term—has transformed into a topic that tens of thousands of parent-child families nationwide actively explore and discuss during their zoo visits, thereby achieving widespread dissemination of science education.

• Shanghai Zoo, Fuzhou Zoo, Chongqing Zoo: During the Orangutan Caring Week in 2025, the RSPO booth came to these three zoos, bringing the stories of RSPO, sustainable palm oil, and orangutan conservation to these three cities.

• Shanghai Zoo: In celebration of Earth Day 2026, the RSPO booth became a popular check-in spot. We collaborated with members of the China Sustainable Palm Oil Alliance (CSPOA), such as Glico China and the Shanghai Food Association, to guide visitors to identify the RSPO logo on the products through physical displays and interactive games.

 The cooperation between RSPO and zoos has just commenced. We look forward to seeing more market entities, especially RSPO members, procure and use sustainable palm oil in the future, and apply the RSPO Certification label on their products, so that the good practices of habitat protection and proactive corporate social responsibility can be recognised by more consumers.

Part Two: The Power of Education—Turning Knowledge into Seeds of Protection

Beyond zoos, we deeply recognise that education is the fundamental driver of transformation. The RSPO China team is committed to bringing stories of sustainable palm oil and responsible consumption into more classrooms.

• Partnering with the One Planet Foundation (OPF): We have been deeply involved in updating OPF’s “My Wild Animal Friends” curriculum, specifically enhancing the lesson on “Orangutans in the Rainforest.” While introducing the habits and conservation status of these “forest men,” the lesson highlights RSPO as a solution that balances economic, social, and environmental concerns. Since February 2026, the programme has successfully launched at the Shanghai Children’s Library, the Chinese Academy of Sciences Kindergarten in Beijing, and the Yuetan Community, with plans to expand into more schools in the near future.

Empowering Science Popularisation Influencers: We have partnered with natural education institutions including Young Naturalist and Guangyang Academy, integrating knowledge related to sustainable palm oil into their science popularisation and education programmes. In February 2026, members of the RSPO China team joined the popular science expedition to the Bornean rainforest, and delivered on-site lectures to Chinese parent-child families at the camp of the Sepilok Orangutan Centre. This immersive interpretation enabled participants to gain an in-depth understanding of the complex relationship between oil palm cultivation and forest conservation.

Bringing the topic into research outreach and local communities: From the Chinese Academy of Sciences Kindergarten to Yuetan Community, and then to the “Science Market” at the Beijing Science Center, we put on displays of fresh palm fruit bunches, palm oil products certified with the RSPO Label, and organised the fun interactive activity “Little Supermarket Detectives”. Through these activities, we helped teenagers and families in Beijing get an up-close look at this sustainability topic originating from the tropics.

Part Three: Cross-Boundary Interaction—Discussing Rainforest Conservation in the CBD

To break through echo chambers, the RSPO China team actively explores the intersection between business and sustainability.

• Engaging in ESG Dialogue: In April 2026, a “Rainforest Afternoon Tea” sharing session was organised at Kerry Centre in Beijing’s CBD. As the first event of the Kerry ESG Plus initiative, we introduced RSPO to ESG leaders from various enterprises, demonstrating that sustainable palm oil is not only an environmental issue but also a key component of corporate ESG practices.

• Promoting Youth Engagement: In November 2025, the RSPO China office welcomed over twenty university students from Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University (BNBU), who showed great interest in tropical rainforest conservation and sustainable supply chains. There, they learned how RSPO Standards can protect tropical rainforest while supporting local economic development.

• In April 2026, at the market event held at the Beijing Science Center, the students of the Youth Achievement (JA) Beijing 101 Middle School Student Company not only designed orangutan-themed badges but also participated in on-site services as volunteers. This signals that the younger generation in China has begun to take the initiative to assume the responsibility of spreading the concept of sustainability.

Looking Ahead

Looking back on this journey, the core exploration of the RSPO China team has always been “building connections” — connecting producing countries and consuming countries, linking conservation issues to our daily lives, and bridging corporate responsibility with public participation.

To protect the habitats of orangutans, we don’t need everyone to become an expert, but we do need everyone to be a responsible consumer. 

The RSPO China team will continue to work hand in hand with our member enterprises, stakeholders, and every one of you who cares for our planet. We look forward to seeing every purchase you make become a vote in support of rainforest protection.