Help Save Borneo
- by: Students Against Borneo Deforestation
- recipient: grocer's, palm oil using companies
Borneo was once covered with dense jungle, but over the past 20 years nearly 80% of its prime rainforest have been destroyed to create garden furniture and paper pulp, and clear way for palm oil plantations.
The forests of Borneo are unique because it is one of the few ecosystems where orangutans, elephants and rhinoceros still co-exist. However palm oil companies are burning the rainforest to clear room for more plantations, a means that is careless and uncontrollable. Indonesia has announced plans to double its palm oil production by 2025, which means that they will need to destroy more rainforests to provide more space for plantations. The destruction of the land has displaced many tribes, forcing them to leave their homes.
By consuming products that use palm oil as an ingredient, we are directly fueling the destruction of these valuable and sensitive ecosystems. As a consumer it is our job to ensure that we do not purchase products that contain palm oil and do not support businesses that sell these products. Our goal is to acquire at least 300 signatures, and when we reach this mark we will send the following letter to our local Orange County grocery stores (Albertsons, Ralph's, Target, Walmart, Pavilion, Trader Joe's, Gelsons, Whole Foods, Vons, CVS, Walgreens). Here is the letter we will send:
To Whom it May Concern,
We the undersigned are writing to express our concern about the fact that your store carries products that contain ingredients, such as palm oil, that have been extracted from trees grown in the vital rainforests of Malaysia and Indonesia. Palm oil companies burn and destroy the rainforest to create more room for plantations, at the expense of this essential natural resource, the many species that call the rainforest home, and the numerous tribes who live in the area.
I uphold your establishment to the highest respect; however, I cannot keep on supporting the products that are fueling the dire situation in Borneo. Products such as:
Nabisco's Oreo's
Chips Ahoy! Cookies
Cadbury Finger Dark Cookies
various Newman's Own products,
Pringles, Ritz Crackers
Sara Lee's Apple Danish
365 Organic Water Crackers
Kit Kat
Dove soap
These products should not be on the market until they stop using palm oil and shift to more conservative options such as sunflower, corn or olive oil. Many companies have already made this change, such as, Lush cosmetic products, Walkers chip company, Lay's chip company and others.
As concerned members of the community, we believe that it is necessary for your establishment to make the shift as well. As consumers we feel the need for you to find alternate products that use more sustainable resources and do not support the destruction of tropical rainforests. Together we can help stop the devastation that is taking place in tropical rainforests around the world, specifically Malaysia and Indonesia. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter.
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