RSPO Supply Chain

Certification: A Primer
The RSPO has set up two certification systems:

1. One to ensure that palm oil is produced sustainably called producer/grower certification
or Principles & Criteria certification;

2. The other to ensure the integrity of the trade in sustainable palm oil, i.e. that palm oil sold
as sustainable palm oil has indeed been produced by certified plantations
Both systems involve third-party certification bodies. Such rigorous certification systems considerably
reduce the risk for consumers to use palm oil that is not sustainable.

MILL

PRODUCER/GROWER
CERTIFICATION
SMALLHOLDER

PLANTATION

STORAGE, TRANSPORT, SHIPPING

REFINERS &
BLENDERS

INGREDIENT
MANUFACTURERS

PRODUCT
MANUFACTURERS

RSPO SUPPLY CHAIN

CERTIFICATION

RETAILERS
1

Supply chain certification

The RSPO has set up four supply chain certification systems (SCCS) with different levels of traceability
and cost. A claim a RSPO member can make about its commitment to sustainable palm oil depends on
the type of SCCS.

SYSTEM

EXPLANATION

Identity Preserved (IP) Sustainable palm oil

from a single identifiable
certified source is kept
separately from ordinary
palm oil throughout
supply chain
Segregated (SG)

Mass Balance (MB)

Book & Claim (B&C)

Sustainable palm oil

from different certified
sources is kept separate
from ordinary palm oil
throughout supply chain
Sustainable palm oil
from certified sources
is mixed with ordinary
palm oil throughout
supply chain
The chain is not
monitored for the
presence of sustainable
palm oil. Manufacturers
and retailers can buy a
GreenPalm certificate
from a RSPO-certified
grower

LEVEL OF
TRACEABILITY

00000

0000

COSTS

$$$$$

$$$$

00

$$

LEVEL OF
CLAIM

TRADEMARK CLAIM ALLOWED

CERTIFIED
This product
contains certified
sustainable palm
oil
CERTIFIED
This product
contains certified
sustainable palm
oil
MIXED
Contributes to
the production
of certified
sustainable palm
oil

Identity Preserved
What is it?
The Identity Preserved (IP) supply chain system assures that the RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil and
its derivatives delivered to the end user are uniquely identifiable to a specific mill and its supply base
and are kept physically separated from all other oil palm sources throughout the supply chain.

How does it work?

The IP supply chain system requires that the grower, refiner and all supply chain actors maintain full
separation and full traceability to the point of delivery to the end user. The end user is therefore assured
that 100% of oil received has come from a uniquely identifiable RSPO-certified plantation and meets all
criteria of the RSPO certification program.

RSPO-CERTIFIED
PLANTATION
MILLER

TRANSPORTER

REFINER

END USER

100
ton

100
ton

100
ton

100
ton

CONVENTIONAL
PLANTATION

What are the requirements for RSPO members?

A proof of separation and full traceability of the RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil and its derivatives
throughout the supply chain is required. A facility must ensure that the RSPO-certified sustainable palm
oil is kept physically isolated from the palm oil coming from other sources and is uniquely identifiable to
the mill and its supply base.

Benefits
Delivered palm oil is 100% RSPO-certified
sustainable palm oil
Fully traceable to a uniquely identifiable RSPOcertified point of origin

Limitations
IP is the most expensive supply chain certification
scheme that the RSPO offers and it is therefore
not feasible for all industry players to adopt this
system
IP is a logistical challenge which means that
introducing and maintaining this scheme is a
resource-intensive task.

Logo used for products containing IP palm oil:

or

Segregation
What is it?
The Segregation supply chain system (SG) assures that RSPO certified sustainable palm oil and its
derivatives delivered to the end user come only from RSPO certified sources. However, it allows mixing
RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil coming from different certified plantations so the identification of a
single original source is not possible.

How does it work?

The SG supply chain system assures that 100% of the actual product has originated from
RSPO certified plantations. However, the physical oil will not be uniquely identified to a specific
plantation as in the case with Identity Preserved.

RSPO-CERTIFIED
PLANTATION

MILLER

TRANSPORTER

REFINER

END USER

100
ton

RSPO-CERTIFIED
PLANTATION

200
ton

200
ton

200
ton

100
ton

CONVENTIONAL
PLANTATION

What are the requirements for RSPO members?

The SG system requires that all RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil is stored separately from the palm oil
coming from non RSPO-certified plantations throughout the supply chain. This model does allow for the
mixing of RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil and its derivatives from various sources.

Benefits

Limitations

Segregation guarantees that the end product

contains 100% certified sustainable palm oil

Segregation is a costly supply chain certification

system from a logistical perspective as palm oil
needs to be kept separately from conventional
palm oil at all times throughout supply chain
Segregated sustainable palm oil is not fully
traceable to the exact plantation where it was
grown but only to the mill.

Logo used for products containing SG palm oil:

Mass Balance
What is it?
The Mass Balance supply chain system administratively monitors trade in RSPO-certified sustainable
palm oil and its derivatives throughout the supply chain, and is an interim solution until the trade in
sustainable palm oil becomes mainstream.

How does it work?

The Mass Balance supply chain model allows everyone within the supply chain to demonstrate their
commitment to sustainable palm oil production and to actively promote trading in RSPO-certified
sustainable palm oil. This model is expected to encourage industry to gradually set up segregated supply
chains and thus increase the level of sustainable palm oil trade.
The Mass Balance system allows RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil to be mixed with conventional palm
oil at any stage of the supply chain process provided that overall company quantities are controlled.

RSPO-CERTIFIED
PLANTATION
MILLER

TRANSPORTER

REFINER

100
ton

100
ton

CONVENTIONAL
PLANTATION

END USER

X
X

What are the requirements for RSPO members?

The basic requirement for Mass Balance is to keep consistency between the quantities of the
RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil bought and the RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil sold. It
implies control of all sales of RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil and its derivatives, which is to be
independently verified. There are no requirements to store RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil
separately from other oil.

Benefits
Actively involves all supply chain actors in
the sustainable palm oil trade in a first step
towards a fully traceable supply chain
Mass Balance is a cost-effective supply chain
solution

Limitations
The Mass Balance system does not guarantee
that the end product actually contains
sustainable palm oil as conventional and
sustainable oil are mixed throughout the supply
chain

Logo used for products containing SG palm oil:

Book and Claim

What is it?
The Book and Claim supply chain system allows all actors of the palm oil supply chain to trade in
certificates for RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil. Buying certificates allows retailers and manufacturers
to claim that their business supports the production of sustainable palm oil. The money raised from
selling certificates is then used by a palm oil grower to reduce environmental and social impact of palm
oil production.

How does it work?

The Book and Claim system allows RSPO-certified growers to convert their certified oil into certificates.
Offers for these certificates are then placed on the GreenPalm Market.
Product manufacturers who use palm oil or any palm-based derivative and fraction in their products
buy these certificates, offsetting their physical oil with the equivalent amount of certificates. The value
of each certificate is sent back to the RSPO producer who reinvests this premium to help tackle the
environmental and social issues created by the production of palm oil. The Book and Claim certification
scheme is operated by GreenPalm.

RSPO-CERTIFIED
PLANTATION
MILLER

TRANSPORTER

REFINER

END USER

100
ton
GLOBAL SUPPLY
CHAIN

CONVENTIONAL
PLANTATION

100
ton

What are the requirements for RSPO members?

Volume credits can only be introduced into the system by RSPO certified mills and their supply
base. Volume credits are traded electronically directly to end users so there are only traceability
requirements for the end product-manufacturer. These requirements are designed to ensure that
all palm oil and/or its derivatives that are claimed to be sustainable under this supply chain model
are covered by sustainable certificates. Users of this scheme are not required to trace and monitor
the presence of actual RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil in their products.

Benefits

Limitations

Directly connect RSPO-certified sustainable

producers to end users of palm oil without the
involvement of the supply chain

Supply chain is not monitored for the presence of

actual sustainable palm oil.

Costs are limited because no changes need to be

made to the supply chain. As the system does not
make supply chain more expensive, almost the
entire price premium goes to palm oil growers
The B&C plays an important role in opening up
new markets such as China and India as commodity
trading is heavily based on price in these markets

Logo used for products containing B&C palm oil:

FIND OUT MORE AT RSPO.ORG

RSPO Secretariat | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia

European helpdesk | [email protected] | T. +32 231 50 19
Published in August 2013
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