Mulia Sawit Group
Mulia Sawit Agro Lestari is a privately-owned Palm Oil Plantation company headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Mulia Sawit has a corporate website which can be found here.
1) Chain Reaction Research article titled, “The Chain: Malaysian BLD Tops List of Major Deforesters in 2018” (04 October 2018)
2) Mighty Earth report titled, “Rapid Response Report 9” (30 October 2018)
3) Mighty Earth report titled, “Rapid Response Report 10” (20 November 2018)
4) Mighty Earth report titled, “Rapid Response Report 11” (19 December 2018)
5) Mighty Earth report titled, “Rapid Response Report 12” (30 January 2019) sent to us via email.
(1) and (2) It was discovered through satellite imagery that a subsidiary of Mulia Sawit Group, PT Persada Era Agro Kencana (PEAK), cleared peat forest and developed the land for Palm Oil in Katingan district, Central Kalimantan.
April 2018
We wrote to Mulia Sawit Group to inform them regarding the allegations of peat clearance and seek clarifications from them.
July 2018
We met with Mulia Sawit and explained our sustainability policy and NDPE commitments. We requested Mulia Sawit to address the issues raised, and stressed the importance of having an action plan in place. We also explained to them our standard procedure in managing suppliers with sustainability issues.
September 2018
We had a follow-up meeting with Mulia Sawit and once again emphasised the need for action to address the issues of planting on peat and deforestation.
December 2018
Following an internal review, we have applied ‘Controlled Purchase’ on Mulia Sawit Group and currently have one final long term contract to be reviewed.
February 2019
We met with Mulia Sawit’s management and addressed the allegations of the supplier having planted and developed in peat areas.
Mulia Sawit clarified that PT PEAK had carried out a peat assessment in 2011 and another HCV assessment in 2016 before cultivating the area. The HCV assessment showed that the total HCV area was 1,126 hectares and that PT PEAK concession does not fall within the peat moratorium area (PIPIB XIV) set by Indonesia’s Ministry of Environment and Forestry.
After in-depth discussions, we have requested that while verification of the allegations (to be completed within 90 working days) are underway, Mulia Sawit will need to impose a moratorium by the first week of March. Failing which, we will review our business dealings with Mulia Sawit until a credible working action plan is in place.
March 2019
We followed up with Mulia Sawit on our recent engagement concerning their planting and development in peat. Unfortunately, Mulia Sawit is unable to commit to an immediate moratorium. Therefore, in line with our controlled purchase protocol, we have stopped purchase from Mulia with immediate effect. We will continue to engage with Mulia in the hope to bring them back to our supply chain after they improve their sustainability practices.
July 2018
Mulia Sawit clarified that Group has followed Indonesian plantations laws in the operations of their plantations.
They have obtained HGU for their concessions and have a SOP on sustainability. On PT PEAK, there is a moratorium in place and they are working with consultants on peat management. HCV studies have been carried out and land has been set aside for conservation.
September 2018
Mulia Sawit said that they have issued a sustainability policy, all their operations have obtained HGU, and the moratorium in PT PEAK is still in place.
They also highlighted that they have secured government permission prior to planting in PT PEAK, and the HCV studies were completed in 2016. Peat areas are located outside the concession area.
HCV studies will be carried out for all areas prior to development.
