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US consumers may be exposed to deforestation-linked palm oil via dairy: Report

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JAKARTA — Consumers in the U.S. might be unknowingly exposed to palm oil products that come from deforestation, despite major consumer goods producers there adopting zero-deforestation pledges. That’s because these companies, which include the makers of iconic foods like Snickers, Kit Kat and Nutella, don’t account for the significant role that palm oil-based animal feed plays in their supply chains, according to a new report. Its relatively low price and extremely versatility mean palm oil has become the most widely used vegetable oil in the world. In the U.S. itself, palm oil can be found in roughly half of all packaged goods in the average grocery store, from shampoo to cookies and crackers. Palm oil is also increasingly being used as an additive in livestock feed, particularly for dairy cows. As such, it has become “embedded” in consumer goods products deriving from dairy, such as milk, cheese, ice cream and chocolate. This indirect use of palm oil is often overlooked in the zero-deforestation accounting process, despite its growing use, according to a report by U.S.-based advocacy group Rainforest Action Network (RAN). The report found that palm oil-based animal feed is now the single largest palm oil product category imported by the U.S., accounting for 36% of all palm oil imports into the country by weight. This dairy — “embedded” with palm oil, some of which may be associated with deforestation — then enters the supply chains of major food producers. And these producers, despite their public pledges to avoid deforestation-linked…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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