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EU aids shoppers to steer clear of harmful palm oil
February 9, 2015
EU aids shoppers to steer clear of harmful palm oil
By Ruth Evans
New food labelling rules on giving consumers in Europe more information should help to protect the world’s tropical forests and the climate.
LONDON, 6 February, 2015 − A European Union decision to give consumers more information about the food they buy could mean good news for tropical countries whose forests are threatened by the expanding trade in palm oil.
Palm oil is found in 50% of supermarket products, such as soaps and shampoos, and in many sorts of food. But the EU requirement that food products containing the oil must now be labelled clearly should help to dispel doubts about the damage it can cause.
Producing the oil often involves felling virgin rainforest, reducing biodiversity and destroying the habitat of endangered species such as orangutans, elephants and tigers, and ruining the livelihoods of local people.
It also involves the release of large quantities of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere when carbon-rich tropical forests are cleared for plantations.
Read more at Climate News Network.
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