NUSA DUA (Nov 12): Indonesia is developing a digital information system that will allow its sustainable-certified palm oil exports to be traced to their origins, ahead of the implementation of new European trade rules at the end of this year, a senior government official said on Thursday.

Under the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) coming into effect on December 31, companies will be required to prove that commodities sold to the EU have not been produced on deforested land.

The Information System for Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (SI ISPO) is expected to provide end-to-end traceability for producers that have been certified as sustainable by Indonesia, from plantations and smallholders through to collection points, palm oil mills, downstream processors and exporters, said Dida Gardera, a senior official at Indonesia's Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs.

"Through certification and digital traceability, we aim to ensure that Indonesia's palm oil products originate from legal, sustainable and deforestation-free supply chains," he told a palm oil industry conference in Bali.

"SI ISPO is being developed with reference to global standards, including the EUDR," Gardera said, adding that the supply chain of ISPO-certified companies and smallholders could be traced through the system as early as next month.

From the end of December, the EUDR will ban imports into the EU of cocoa, palm oil and other commodities linked to forest destruction, requiring exporters to trace their products back to the plot where they were grown to demonstrate that they were not sourced from deforested land.

The EU is the fourth-largest export market for Indonesian palm oil products, but shipments have declined in recent years due to tighter environmental regulations in the bloc.

The new platform will collect data from relevant ministries, including the forestry, agriculture, industry and agrarian affairs ministries, to provide "clear, clean and integrated data," he said.

The EUDR was delayed by the European Union for 12 months due to concerns about the readiness of the information technology systems needed for its implementation.

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