Socio-ecological perspectives of engaging smallholders in environmental-friendly palm oil certification schemes

Saadun, Norzanalia; Lim, Evelyn Ai Lin; Esa, Shakinah Mohd; Ngu, Freddy; Awang, Fatihah; Gimin, Akram; Johari, Izzah Hafizah; Firdaus, Muhammad Abrisam; Wagimin, Nurul Izati; Azhar, Badrul

doi:10.1016/j.landusepol.2017.12.057

Cited by 65 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The results also reveal that most independent smallholders interviewed, do care about environmental sustainability and want to improve their management strategies. These results reflect those of Saadun et al (2018), who have investigated smallholders in Malaysia, stating that the socio-ecological background needs to be considered when designing a certification scheme.…”

Section: Which Stakeholders Are Perceived As Important Within the Inssupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Consequently, smallholders, who are still regarded as the world's poorest farmers, have lost their prominent role within such certification schemes. Some studies have indicated difficulties for smallholders to properly access certification schemes (Saadun et al 2018;Azhar et al 2017;Azhar et al 2015;Brandi et al 2015). One possible factor here is that they have rarely been invited to take part in decisionmaking regarding governance processes (Gillespie 2012), meaning they are not considered essential stakeholders.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental Governance Meets Reality: A Micro-Scale Perspective on Sustainability Certification Schemes for Oil Palm Smallholders in Jambi, Sumatra

Martens

Kunz

Rosyani

et al. 2019

Society & Natural Resources

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Multi-stakeholder sustainability certification schemes have become a favorite instrument for applying good governance, though studies indicate their inefficiency at the producer level. In this study, we used a mixed-method approach to first, map the institutional context of independent oil-palm smallholders in rural Sumatra while, second, reflecting upon the impact of the Smallholder Standard proposed by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil on smallholder management practices. We hold that non-recognition of micro-scale perspectives within governance processes may partially explain noncompliance with certification principles among smallholders. The Smallholder Standard appears unable to mitigate challenges important for smallholders, who in turn cannot properly comply with it, due to problems including weather instability and high management costs. We suggest that certification schemes need to work on some overlooked but essential preconditions of good governance, namely gaining micro-level visibility and acceptance.

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Section: Which Stakeholders Are Perceived As Important Within the Inssupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Governance Meets Reality: A Micro-Scale Perspective on Sustainability Certification Schemes for Oil Palm Smallholders in Jambi, Sumatra

Martens

Kunz

Rosyani

et al. 2019

Society & Natural Resources

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“…The smallholder plantations generally lack infrastructure for water table monitoring and thus may have less intensive drainage than industrial plantations (Dommain et al, 2016). Whilst almost all of the industrial plantations are under monocropping, the smallholder plantations tend to plant other crops, with 39% of independent smallholders and 9% of managed smallholders in a recent survey planting another crop (intercropping) in their oil palm fields, out of 300 respondents in 6 different regions in Peninsular Malaysia (Saadun et al, 2018). In spite of industrial plantations' omission of intercropping due to the complexity in mechanizing farm management and potential lower yield of oil palm, smallholders tend to practice intercropping for subsistence and extra income between oil palm fruiting cycles (Nchanji et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is Intercropping an Environmentally-Wise Alternative to Established Oil Palm Monoculture in Tropical Peatlands?

Dhandapani¹,

Girkin²,

Evers³

et al. 2020

Front. For. Glob. Change

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Tropical peatlands in Southeast Asia are important ecosystems that play a crucial role in global biogeochemical cycles, with a potential for strong climate feedback loops. The degradation of tropical peatlands due to the expansion of oil palm plantations and their impact on biodiversity and the carbon balance is a global concern. The majority of conversion of Southeast Asian peatlands to agriculture has been by smallholder oil palm farmers, who follow more varied cropping systems compared to industrial plantations, and have better scope for expansion of other alternative varied cropping systems if supported and encouraged. Using previously-published data on peat physicochemical properties, biodiversity and greenhouse gas emissions from smallholder oil palm plantations, we determined that prolonged oil palm monocropping for two generations would result in loss of carbon and peat functional properties that may lead to potential declassification of peatlands. We propose intercropping during the early stages of oil palm as a wise alternative for already-existing plantations in tropical peatlands to ameliorate some of the negative environmental impacts of oil palm on the physio-chemical properties of peat. However, we emphasize the need to more fully explore the sustainability of intercropping systems throughout the life cycle of palm plantations on peatlands, and integrate with current management practices. We also emphasize the further need for research to fully assess the impacts of oil palm intercropping compared to widelypracticed oil palm monocropping. Finally, we suggest changes in government certification policies to encourage intercropping practices by smallholders.

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“…The studies by Feintrenie et al (2010b) and Jelsma et al (2017a), among others, illustrate that smallholders generally do not have a conservationist attitude, and that many will opt to convert forest into oil palm if the opportunity presents itself. Where land for expansion is available and affordable, intensification is not a necessity, and the motivation to invest in better management is likely to be limited, unless other incentives (such as a price premium; Saadun et al, 2018) are in place. Intensification depends on increased investments in terms of capital (herbicides, fertilisers) and labour (harvesting, weeding) and increased resource use efficiency, and these in turn require a general interest in making investments, being efficient, and increasing profits from the side of the plantation owner.…”

Section: Lack Of Fit Of the 'Intensification' Narrativementioning

confidence: 99%

On yield gaps and better management practices in Indonesian smallholder oil palm plantations

Woittiez

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Socio-ecological perspectives of engaging smallholders in environmental-friendly palm oil certification schemes

Cited by 65 publications

References 45 publications

Environmental Governance Meets Reality: A Micro-Scale Perspective on Sustainability Certification Schemes for Oil Palm Smallholders in Jambi, Sumatra

Environmental Governance Meets Reality: A Micro-Scale Perspective on Sustainability Certification Schemes for Oil Palm Smallholders in Jambi, Sumatra

Is Intercropping an Environmentally-Wise Alternative to Established Oil Palm Monoculture in Tropical Peatlands?

On yield gaps and better management practices in Indonesian smallholder oil palm plantations

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