Research Library

Biodiversity impact of RSPO certification – an assessment of good practices

The study, commissioned by the RSPO, is aimed at evaluating whether the RSPO certification processes can or have contributed to the protection of species and landscapes, and identifies opportunities for improvement.

Deforestation spillovers from oil palm sustainability certification

Published in Environmental Research Letters in March 2020, this study quantified forest loss and conservation spillovers from the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certification system in Indonesian Borneo (Kalimantan).

Comparative life cycle assessment of RSPO-certified and non-certified palm oil

This report, prepared by 2.0 LCA consultants, presents the executive summary of a detailed life cycle assessment (LCA) study of palm oil production comparing the environmental impact of RSPO certified sustainable palm oil with non-certified palm oil.

Companies committed to sustainable palm oil production have substantively stronger equity returns

This analysis by Climate Advisers was done to compare the financial performance of RSPO companies to non-RSPO companies.

Field evidence for positive certification outcomes on oil palm smallholder management practices in Colombia

This study is a farm-level assessment of certification programs in the oil palm sector by focusing on RSPO and Organic (IFOAM) certified smallholders in Magdalena, Colombia.

Organic and fair palm oil production - Assessment project

The overall objective of this study project was to clarify the extent to which organically certified palm oil helps ensure positive 'sustainability impacts' compared to palm oil that is produced without any certification or with RSPO certification.

Improve long-term biodiversity management and monitoring on certified oil palm plantations in Colombia by centralizing efforts at the sector level

Published in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change in August 2019, this study sought to explore the challenges to effective biodiversity monitoring on oil palm plantations.

Peeling back the label - exploring sustainable palm oil ecolabelling and consumption in the United Kingdom

Published in Environmental Research Letters, this paper aimed at exploring the extent to which members of the general public are aware of palm oil, their perceptions about its environmental impact, and recognition and inclusion of RSPO ecolabelled products in household shopping compared to other widely known ecolabels.

Evaluating the effectiveness of palm oil certification in delivering multiple sustainability objectives.

This paper evaluates the effectiveness of RSPO plantations compared to non-certified plantations by assessing the relative performance of several key sustainability metrics (environmental, economic and social aspects) compared to business as usual practices.

Stakeholder perceptions of the environmental effectiveness of multi-stakeholder initiatives: Evidence from the palm oil, soy, cotton, and timber programs.

The main aim of this paper was to analyse the stakeholders' perceptions of the effectiveness of four globally significant MSIs: RSPO, RTRS, BCI and FSC. It also explored the differences between the views of the various stakeholder groups.