Endangered species threatened by unsustainable palm oil production

Orangutan

Bornean Orangutan, Endangered | Sumatran Orangutan, Critically Endangered

Indonesia and Malaysia produce more than 85% of the world’s palm oil and are the only remaining homes to orangutans. Fewer than 80,000 of these animals survive today, their habitats under constant threat of deforestation.

Sumatran elephant

Critically Endangered

While Sumatra is home to several of the country’s largest national parks, many areas in these parks are destroyed—illegally—to produce palm oil. The elephant population across the island is crashing, with far fewer than 3,000 surviving, as herds are left homeless, harassed, and killed due to intense conflict with people over shrinking habitat.

Bornean pygmy elephant

Endangered

The smallest in size of Asian elephant subspecies, only 1,500 or so of these pachyderms live on Borneo, an island where palm oil production continues to encroach on their habitat.

Sumatran rhino

(Critically Endangered)

These smallest rhinos are also the closest living relatives to the now-extinct woolly rhinos. Their population is unstable, threatened by poaching as well as the destruction of their habitat by unsustainable palm oil production.

We’re making progress—and you can help

WWF is a founding member of the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), which creates standards for sustainable palm oil production and certifies qualified growers and processors. About 20 percent of the world’s palm oil is certified sustainable by RSPO. When you shop for food, buy products with the RSPO logo to support companies using certified sustainable palm oil.