Indonesian government officials said they do not know how many children work in the country’s massive palm oil industry, either full or part time. But the U.N.’s International Labor Organization has estimated 1.5 million children between 10 and 17 years old labor in its agricultural sector. Palm oil is one of the largest crops, employing some 16 million people.
“It is an issue, and we know it’s an issue,” said Dan Strechay, the RSPO’s global outreach and engagement director, adding that the association has started working with UNICEF and others to educate members about what constitutes child labor. Most people take words like “organic,” “fair trade” and “sustainable” at face value. But not Olivia. She became increasingly worried about palm oil, rifling through the kitchen cupboards in her family’s century-old farmhouse in Jonesborough, Tennessee, to inspect the ingredients printed on cans and wrappers. Then she began digging through her shampoos and lotions, trying to make sense of the scientific-sounding names she saw there.
“Let them enjoy it,” said Abang, a skinny 14-year-old who dropped out of the fifth grade to help his father on an Indonesian plantation and has never tasted ice cream. He has accepted his own fate, but still dreams of a better future for his little brother. It’s a cycle that 15-year-old Jo was trying to break. Even though he had to help his family in the fields each day, heaving palm fruits high over his head and lobbing them onto trucks, his parents let him keep $6 a month to cover school fees so he could attend morning classes.
An official estimate says 80,000 children of illegal migrants, mostly from Indonesia and the Philippines, are living in Sabah alone, but some rights groups say the true number could be nearly double that. Without birth certificates and with no path to citizenship, they are essentially stateless – denied access to even the most basic rights, and at high risk of exploitation.
Many never leave their guarded plantations, some so remote that workers must climb hills to search for a phone signal. And for those who dare to go out, trouble can come quickly. Some companies in Indonesia provide rudimentary elementary schooling on plantations, but children who want to continue their studies may find they have to travel too far on poor roads or that they can’t afford it. In Malaysia, the problem is even bigger: Without legal documents, tens of thousands of kids are not allowed to go to government schools at all.
Many young palm oil workers also have little understanding about reproductive health. Girls working on remote plantations are vulnerable to sexual abuse, and teen pregnancies and marriages are common. She said her son, whose own newborn baby was buried in the adjacent grave, had inherited his father’s job. He is the family’s main breadwinner now.Olivia is not the first Girl Scout to raise questions about the way palm oil makes its way into the beloved American cookies.
Still, for many food and cosmetic companies facing increased pressure from conscientious consumers, the association’s stamp of approval has become the go-to answer when questions are raised about their commitments to sustainability. When contacted by the AP, companies reaffirmed their support of human rights for all workers, with some noting they rely on their suppliers to meet industry standards and abide by local laws. If evidence of wrongdoing is found, some said they would immediately cut ties with producers.
Weston Foods, which owns ABC Bakers, would not provide any information about its palm oil suppliers, citing proprietary reasons, so the AP could not determine if its supply chain was tainted.
The palm oil industry's exploitation (use!) of child labor is and has been a problem. Contact your favorite stores and food brands - warn them you will not do business with those who profit from this practice.
Yeah, let’s blame it on “the girls” and give consumers large a big pass for not giving a fuck about this & other food issues, like GMO’s, etc... Anybody still boycotting McD’s for feeding us fries cooked in beef fat before they got caught? I rest my case!
Nice going girlscouts!
My New Years wish is that the world gets at least ONE news outlet that doesn’t do this 👆 ...is this story about the girl guides being the palm oil industry’s ONLY customer? (I didn’t click the bait!), or are you really NOT smart enough to do a story on the child exploitation?
Glad you got those Girl Scout cookies exposed. 🤦♀️ “Palm oil is in nearly everything – close to 50% of the packaged products we find in supermarkets, from pizza, doughnuts & chocolate, to deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste & lipstick. It’s also used in animal feed and as a biofuel.”
EvelDick Plus the cookies just plain suck anyway. Now I won’t feel guilty not buying any!
Thin mints so good. Nom nom nom.
Come on, what do they do, recruit Girl Scouts to go out there and harvest?
I learned of palm oil plantations 9 months ago . After finding out how destructive they are to environment, animals, & how they contribute to exploitation of kids I tried to buy products without the oil. Started with butter-IMPOSSIBLE. Scientists need to develop a replacement
Now this is journalism ... MOAR
Of course it is. Humans suck.
Girl scout cookies have palm oil as a ingredient. No girl scout cookies for my family. Instead I'll buy the first aid kits boyscouts sell.
You wouldn't have the staff or time to do this for every single company that is build on overseas slave labor. This article reads like you've been in a coma since the 80's. This is the result of 'The World is Flat!'
Leftists are insane.... meanwhile you wear nikes and shitpost on your iPhones... idiots
Uh oh, then we’d better get rid of Oreos. They contain palm oil.
Gotta start those capitalists out at a young age. The way to true greatness is through the exploitation of labor. Duh... anyone knows that.
Unfortunately, child labor probably plays a part in just about any industry in a impoverished or developing nation. This is not unique to just palm oil. Will you give up coffee?
Nice inflammatory headline. There are many much larger manufacturers using Palm oil than the Girl Scout Cookies. There is no direct contract or or connection between the Palm Oil manufacturers and the GSA.
Nothing shocks me anymore. 😔
Hah....”Nestle, Unilever, Kellogg’s, PepsiCo...” but we are choosing to spotlight and shame the Girl Scouts? Just admit you hate women.
No surprise there All about the money.
Phone number one it is too risky for girls to go door-to-door selling girl scout cookies that needs to be put in the past and stay there
White suburban moms don't care....
Kinda like the NBA and China. 🤔
I read about palm oil and deforestation. I'm giving up my favorite candies which include palm oil. I thought I was making a better choice by staying away from corn syrup.
It is all about money and profit!
I knew it! Finally someone is breaking this story!
Watching 10 year olds sell cookies outside my local grocery store in 30 degree weather, I've realized Girl Scout cookies were tied to child labor a long time ago.
Don't worry Biden has a plan
Forced child labor? Abusive child labor? Or child labor of 3rd world countries where these children are doing there best to help support their families? Cus God knows they need all the help they can get.
By all means, put these children out of work so they and their parents starve.
Palm oil is also bad for your health being highly saturated, bad for the environment too, and then child labor on top of this, just ugh.
Pathetic ASS PRESS of the Ghettocrats now blaming girl scouts for other countries misdeeds
I'm okay with this as long as cookies taste the same.
Worst merit badge ever
Ol Betsy DeVos knows all about exploiting children Why does she have so many yachts? To covertly transport stolen children
Do Hershey's chocolate next...or American slaughterhouse workers. Exploitation is inherent in almost everything we consume. This is not a uniquely Girl Scout issue.
Would you like to know where you have shove your WOKE cookies? Use of palm oil is broad --- why are you attacking Girl Scouts in particular?
Did the Boy Scouts write this?
Omg
this is obviously a hit-job from 'the Scouts' in response to the recent suit that was filed
Just another case of imports taking American jobs
Only money counts. Time to stop this.
1 yr has passed the only research paper for a natural origin of COVID-19 is the infamous study published last March in Nature: the Proximal Origin of SARS-CoV-2. At least two authors are getting money from China. One is honored by CCP. The virus was made & leaked from a PLA lab.