U.S. Bans Importation of Malaysian Palm Oil Products Following Petition Filed by G&E’s ESG Institute
NEW YORK (Oct. 5, 2020) – In an important human rights order issued Sept. 30, U.S. Customs and Border Protection banned all palm oil and palm oil products manufactured by Malaysia’s biggest palm oil producer, FGV Holdings Berhad.
The CBP’s order comes after the Grant & Eisenhofer ESG Institute, a policy group focused on environmental, social and governance issues for institutional investors, petitioned the agency last summer to ban U.S. importation of FGV’s palm oil and palm oil products. The petition alleged widespread evidence of forced labor and illegal child labor practices on the company’s palm oil plantations in Malaysia.