Kit-Kat Habitat Killer

The Greenpeace report “Caught Red Handed” details how Nestle sources palm oil from suppliers that “continue to expand into the rainforest and carbon-rich peatlands” and into the oranguntan habitats of Indonesia. Nestle has been known to contract with Indonesia’s largest palm oil supplier, the notoriously unsustainable Sinar Mas group. Unilever and Kraft have already canceled contracts with the plantation company as a result of its expansion into the only successful orangutan sanctuary, Sumatra. In the wake of protests and mounting evidence that Sinar Mas is breaking Indonesian law and ignoring the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil, Nestle Chairman Peter Brebeck-Letmathe issued an April 18th statement condemning the biofuels industry and calling a moratorium on deforestation. Spokeswoman Nina Backes said that Nestle “ will not source from companies where there is verifiable evidence of environmental damage.” Greenpeace alleges that Nestle continues to buy the oil in blended batches from third party suppliers.

In addition to the boycott on Nestle products like Kit Kat, Butterfinger, and Drumstiks, Greenpeace has launched a digital media campaign including a mock Kit Kat commercial and flooding Nestle’s Facebook to the point that marketing experts considered shutting it down. “The damage has been done . . . it’s tough to turn that negativity around.”

Creative Commons image: "Hey Nestle: Give me a Break" by Greenpeace International on Flickr.