Deforestation of orangutan habitat feeds global palm oil demand, report shows

JAKARTA — A major palm oil company supplying to global brands like Nestlé and PepsiCo continues to source the raw commodity from plantations responsible for deforesting prime orangutan habitat in Sumatra, according to a recent investigation. U.S.-based environmental advocacy group Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has found Singapore-based conglomerate Royal Golden Eagle (RGE) allegedly buying palm oil from a mill in Sumatra that sourced palm fruit from a plantation in the Leuser Ecosystem, one of Indonesia’s last large tracts of intact rainforest. RGE is owned by one of Indonesia’s wealthiest t...