Coconut farming is destroying 20 animal species for every million tons of coconut oil made.
That claim made by Borneo-based Eric Meijaard has been debunked by Filipino coconut scientists (10 August 2020, James A Loyola, “Groups Debunk Environmental Charges Against Coconut Farming[1],” Manila Bulletin). Mr Loyola says:
Philippine coconut industry stakeholders, advocacy groups, and academicians debunked recent international articles singling out coconut oil production as both environmental and biodiversity threats.
Victoria Espaldon, former Dean of University of the Philippines-Los Baños School of Environment Science and Management (UPLB-SESAM), finds the online post “generally a (haphazard) work.” She says, “The article is vague on whether it is the coconut oil production itself or that landscapes are transformed (into those of) coconuts as environmental issues.”
Mr Loyola says American Asa Feinstein, a coconut advocate and CEO of Coco Asenso, debunked the claims primarily sourced from Meijaard, a Dutch conservation scientist. Mr Feinstein explained that “Coconuts are mentioned as a factor that has threatened 66 species, while oil palm has threatened 321 species. If you didn’t catch that, according to the IUCN and contrary to the title of Meijaard’s article, palm oil production has threatened five times more species than coconuts!” Over the past 3 decades, Mr Feinstein says, oil palms have deforested 12 million hectares.
The International Coconut Community (ICC) finds it “intriguing” that the author, Borneo-based Eric Meijaard, chose to headline the threat from coconut oil to shield palm oil, which is under intense attack for its harmful environmental effects. “Apparently, Mr Meijaard considers this as a zero-sum competition between coconut oil and palm oil, when there should be none,” said (the) ICC.
Miss Victoria says, “The transformation of Philippine landscapes to coconut began hundreds of years ago. At the moment, (areas are) not expanding; rather, coconut areas are receding and being transformed into other land uses or mixed uses (agroforestry).”
So where is the biodiversity threat?
In fact, Miss Victoria says, “Coconut-based diversified farms are turning into habitats for wildlife, particularly for birds and insects.”
Professor Emeritus Toby Dayrit points out: “No rain forests have been burned in the past 200 years to plant coconuts.” In fact, “coconuts actually promote biodiversity in barren islands and seashores where no other plants grow.”
And coconut is being used to manufacture virgin coconut oil, health supplements, beauty products, biodiesel and aesthetic décor[2] (UCAP, 10 August 2020, malaya.com.ph).
Actually, there is a hidden threat to coconuts that does not come from competing with oil palms:
The coconuts themselves!
UCAP said that the main problem facing the local industry is actually the near extinction of coconut trees, most of which were planted during the Spanish colonial times two hundred years ago.
The PH government, UCAP said, “should expedite its initiative to help the industry,” with old-gold, new or improved varieties. I know the Philippine Coconut Authority has those varieties, but not enough budget for a national replanting.
The coconut contributes $2 billion in export receipts yearly and provides livelihood to 3.5 million farmers.
PH, save our coconut farmers!@517
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