Smallholder RSPO certification, economic benefits and agrochemical use

Bibliographic Data

ID15548486
AuthorsSebastian Renner (0000-0002-9448-3386, Universität Hamburg, corresponding author), Anette Ruml (0000-0003-1984-373X, German Institute for Global and Area Studies), Tabea Lakemann (0000-0003-0138-7342, German Institute for Global and Area Studies), Nunung Nuryartono (0000-0001-8870-7753, IPB University), Aiyen Tjoa (0000-0003-0583-9174, Tadulako University), Marife D Corre (0000-0003-0359-2104, University of Göttingen), Jotham Lay (0000-0002-0784-3807, German Institute for Global and Area Studies), Jann Lay
Year2024
Volume19
Issue11
Pages114093-114093
Publication date2024-10-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueEnvironmental Research Letters (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1748-9326 • E-ISSN: 1748-9326
PublisherIOP Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1088/1748-9326/ad8367
OpenAlexW4403119416
LanguageEN
References cited42

Sustainability standards, such as the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), can potentially mitigate the trade-offs between economic benefits and environmental harm of oil palm expansion. Using unique primary household and farm level panel data collected from Jambi Province, Indonesia, we first document the differences in agricultural inputs and outputs between certified and non-certified smallholder farmers. Second, we illustrate the potential implications and mechanisms of certification. In this study, therefore, we aim to first document agricultural input and output differences between certified and non-certified smallholder farmers, second to illustrate potential effects of certification with observational data and third to provide guidance for future rigorous causal analyses. We find generally positive correlations between RSPO certification, land productivity, profits, and fertilizer use, and a negative correlation with toxic herbicide use. However, we do not find price premiums for RSPO-certified farmers. Overall, the results of this study are indicative of potentially modest effects of RSPO-certification that may operate through higher productivity due to improved management practices that remain agrochemical intensive but avoid some particularly harmful chemicals. Our findings are relevant to better understand the strong sustainability claims of RSPO marketing and to provide guidance for rigorous causal experimental and quasi-experimental studies

Agricultural economics · Agriculture · Agrochemical · Business · Certification · Economics · Geography · Natural resource economics · Agricultural Innovations and Practices · Agricultural Systems and Practices · Sustainable Agricultural Systems Analysis

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access