Malaysia is home to the world’s oldest commercial oil palm plantings and is currently the second largest producer of palm oil worldwide. The Malaysian plantation industry has pioneered most of the best practices in sustainability and continues to leverage on its century-old lead in oil palm research and development experience to continue pursuing sustainable initiatives. The industry has made conscious and concerted efforts to address the concerns of stakeholders including customers, NGOs, and the general public in proving that oil palm is a sustainable crop that can meet the growing demand for edible oil from consumers worldwide, with the least land area expansion and highest yield per hectare compared to competing edible oil crops. The palm oil industry has balanced the 3Ps - People, Planet, Profit - in its growth and expansion to ensure environmental protection, social and community welfare as well as long-term shareholder returns.

This paper describes the major milestones and ongoing efforts towards sustainability by Sime Darby Plantation - the world’s largest producer of certified sustainable palm oil that provides more than 2 million tonnes of Certified Sustainable Palm Oil (CSPO) or 22% of the world’s sustainable palm oil supply.