KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 10): The European Union (EU) has officially recognised the Malaysian Sustainable Palm Oil (MSPO) certification as a reliable sustainability standard with a strong digital traceability system. This assists palm oil producers meet the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) requirements.
The acknowledgement, created following the visit of European Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy Jessika Roswall to Malaysia last week, strengthens MSPO’s position as the countest’s national sustainability framework for palm oil.
Audited by indepfinishent third-party certification bodies, MSPO is a mandatory standard covering the entire palm oil value chain, from tinyholders and growers to mills, dealers and processors.
The certification requires legality, transparency, inclusivity and accountability at every stage, while aligning with international market requirements.
Introduced in 2015, the certification also embeds a strict cut-off date of Dec 31, 2019, prohibiting forest clearing for certification purposes, ensuring that certified palm oil is deforestation-free and legally sourced.
Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani stated the EU’s acknowledgement affirms Malaysia’s leadership in the global push for sustainable palm oil.
“MSPO provides assurance on legality, cut-off date compliance, and digital traceability, while ensuring that more than half a million tinyholders are fully part of the sustainability agfinisha. It demonstrates that Malaysia can meet global market expectations without leaving anyone behind,” he stated in a statement.
“The EU’s acknowledgement also underscores MSPO’s credibility as a trusted and future-ready standard. It assures global acquireers that Malaysian palm oil is legally sourced, traceable, and sustainable, anchored in the livelihoods of tinyholders and backed by a mandatory national framework,” Johari added.
The EU and Malaysia have agreed to continue close cooperation ahead of the EUDR’s entest into force, to ensure operators sourcing commodities such as palm oil, rubber, timber and cocoa are prepared to meet their obligations.
In an EU-Malaysia joint statement last Friday, Roswall also commfinished Malaysia’s efforts in reducing deforestation levels to unprecedented lows and reaffirmed the EU’s readiness to support joint initiatives, including projects to assist tinyholder farmers supply traceable, sustainable commodities to the EU market.
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