Indonesian Researchers Disagree over Study Likens Palm Oil with Tobacco and Alcohol Industries
A group of Indonesian palm oil researchers have signed a statement publicly expressing their skepticism about a study that likens palm oil with tobacco and alcohol industries.
A group of Indonesian palm oil researchers have signed a statement publicly expressing their skepticism about a study that likens palm oil with tobacco and alcohol industries. They said the study is totally biased since it used imbalanced secondary data and was contrary to newest researches.
More than 40 researchers of Indonesian Palm Oil Community (MAKSI) gathered in Yogyakarta, 25-26 January 2019, on a focus group discussion. At the forum supported by the Indonesian Oil Palm Fund Management Agency (BPDPKS), they agreed not to accept a study titled “The Palm Oil Industry and Noncommunicable Disease”, authored by Sowmya Kadandale, Robert Marten, and Richard Smith which was published on WHO bulletin.
The study had claimed the relationship between the palm oil and processed food industries, and the tactics they employed resemble practices adopted by the tobacco and alcohol industries.
Food expert from Gadjah Mada University Sri Raharjo had systematically and scientifically analyzed the study. He concluded that the study was imbalanced in presenting secondary data, especially on the conclusion which was not in line with the orginal purposes as stated at the beginning of the paper.
Executive Secretary of SEAFAST Center at Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) Puspo Edi Giriwono said that the study didn’t include balanced information about palm oil and was contrary with newest researches. Apart from that, the study was not intended to seek solution but only to build discourse that palm oil is a source of noncommunicable diseases.
The palm oil researchers understood that the study wasn’t conducted by WHO nor was a policy of WHO. In this case, they agreed not to accept a study that likens palm oil with tobacco and alcohol industries.
MAKSI’s Chairman Darmono Taniwiryono invited all stakeholder to support sustainable palm oil. He also invited researchers to write more articles on international journals like IJOP (International Journal of Oil Palm) in order to show the real facts of palm oil. (Source: Sawit Indonesia)
