We did it! Italy Signs the Amsterdam Declaration in Support of Sustainable Palm Oil

Two weeks ago we invited the Environment Minister Gianluca Galletti to endorse the Amsterdam Declaration – read our letter. On early Tuesday, his signature was put on paper.

We welcome Environment Minister Gianluca Galletti decision to sign the Amsterdam Declaration.

The decision of the Italian Government to join The Netherlands, France, Germany, Great Britain, Norway and Denmark confirms once more that palm oil is sustainable and it is not harmful. This is a further response to the anti palm oil movement blaming palm oil to be bad for health, people and environment. We have demonstrated multiple times that these anti palm oil fanatics act following ideological bias to support commercial strategies.

Palm oil is not the primary cause of deforestation. Palm plantations are the most productive cultivation existing. Moreover, as stated by the Amsterdam Declaration, palm oil can be produced in a sustainable way.

The decision of the Italian Government comes few days after the ruling of the  Belgian Court of Appeal in Brussels that acknowledged that the Belgian supermarket Delhaize broke the law when it made wild and inaccurate allegations about Palm Oil, including on the labels of its own ‘Palm Oil Free’ product.

In our most recent study – download it here – we demonstrate that most products that have replaced palm oil (with a visible “palm oil free” claim on the package) have more saturated fats than products with palm oil. This is why we believe that “palm oil free” labels are illegal. They mislead consumers and betrayed their good faith. Furthermore the anti palm oil NGOs’, groups, and companies have boosted a fictional and anti scientific reality, promoting bias and oaths.

Food producers must be free to use or not use palm oil, but they should not use the “palm oil free” label with the clear purpose to confuse consumers. Once more, we invite all companies to stop promoting their products with the “palm oil free” label.