Quicktake
Can Palm Oil Demand Be Met Without Rainforest Ruin?: QuickTake
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One of the world’s most widely used commodities — palm oil — is also one of its most controversial. Cheap, efficient and extraordinarily versatile, it’s found in thousands of everyday products, from cookies and ice cream to shampoo and fuel. Yet surging cultivation of oil palm trees has come at the expense of vast swathes of tropical rainforest in Southeast Asia. Environmental concerns spurred the introduction of so-called sustainable palm oil, but the uptake has been slow and the program has faced criticism.