Resumen de Palm before the storm
Abraham comments that with global demand for cosmetics, soap, biodiesel and vegetable cooking oil ever on the rise, the African oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) has been a boon, providing the essential ingredient for all these. So much so, that it is now widely cultivated beyond its native range, notably in South-East Asia, where the creation of vast oil-palm estates has caused massive deforestation and the local extinction of some species. The boom in South-East Asian oil-palm cultivation has hit a stumbling block owing to a diminishing supply of new agricultural land. This, combined with economic incentives such as cheap labor, attractive land acquisition terms and low taxes, has seen foreign agribusinesses converting large tracts of land in west and central Africa to grow oil palm. Here, he explains reasons why it is important to avoid a repeat of the habitat loss of the past with the oil palm set to take off in its native Africa.
