Should I boycott palm oil?

Most conservation organisations advise choosing certified segregated palm rather than boycotting, because substitutes need more land for the same output and shift the pressure to other ecosystems.

What drives more deforestation, palm oil or soy?

Globally, the largest single driver of agricultural deforestation is pasture and feed-crop expansion for livestock. Most soy is grown to feed farmed animals, not to make tofu.

Planet

Palm oil vs alternative oils

Palm oil is the standard villain in sustainable-shopping guides, and the story is more complicated than the boycott suggests. Palm is by far the highest-yielding oil crop per hectare, so replacing it with lower-yielding oils can expand the total land footprint even as it moves the deforestation elsewhere.

Side by side

Palm oil compared with Alternative oils
Criterion	Palm oil	Alternative oils
Yield per hectare	Far higher than any competing oil crop.	Soy, rapeseed, sunflower and coconut all need substantially more land for the same volume.
Deforestation link	Directly tied to lowland rainforest and peatland conversion in Southeast Asia.	Soy expansion drives Amazon and Cerrado conversion, largely for livestock feed.
Biodiversity	Orangutan, pygmy elephant and tiger habitat loss are the flagship cases.	Cerrado and Chaco conversion is less visible but ecologically severe.
Certification	RSPO and similar schemes vary in rigour; segregated supply chains are stronger than mass-balance claims.	Certification coverage is patchier still for most alternative oils.

Questions people ask

Should I boycott palm oil?: Most conservation organisations advise choosing certified segregated palm rather than boycotting, because substitutes need more land for the same output and shift the pressure to other ecosystems.
What drives more deforestation, palm oil or soy?: Globally, the largest single driver of agricultural deforestation is pasture and feed-crop expansion for livestock. Most soy is grown to feed farmed animals, not to make tofu.