The demand for Palm oil has increasing over the several decades and it has led to criticisms and question about

Oil palm is the world leading vegetable oil. It is an important player in the economic development of the country, both as a contributor to gross national product (GDP), foreign earnings and job creation. With high yields per hectare, cheap to produce and its application to food and non-food industries makes it an important product both locally and internationally. The demand for palm oil has lead to expansion of oil palm plantation around the world over the past several decades, with Indonesia and Malaysia accounting for more than 85 percent of the global palm oil market. Smallholders are important players in the world oil palm industry as they contribute about 40 percent of the planted areas in the two most important oil palm countries. Current study investigated the knowledge level of certification amongst the independent smallholders in Malaysia. The study revealed that most of the independent smallholders do not have certification, with a reasonable number of them having little or no knowledge of certification bodies (RSPO/MSPO). The study revealed that though policies are in place to support smallholders to participate in certification for them to reap the enormous benefits; including wider market access, quality fresh bunches and technical skills, more should be done in terms of implementation in reaching out to the smallholders especially through sensitization programs, including, workshops and extension services to properly educate smallholders on the benefits of certification since they are important player in the global palm oil market.