Indonesia palm oil

Joseph D'Cruz, the head of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), believes that Brussels' new rules could have a "human, social and developmental cost."

The move followed Brussels' passage of a law that could severely restrict palm oil imports to the European bloc.

President Jokowi claims that the country now has enough domestic supplies of cooking oil to control runaway price rises.

Intended to control soaring domestic cooking oil prices, the Indonesian government's ban has had a series of unintended consequences.

Palm oil firms chasing export profits were driving up costs for consumers, creating a potential political headache for the government.

The ban, which comes into effect on Wednesday, will add further upward pressure to the global price of cooking oil.

The EU is making efforts to leverage its market power to ensure that products entering the trading bloc are more environmentally sustainable.

The increased lobbying effort reflects the increasingly negative perceptions of the industry.

The new legislation will do irreparable harm to Indonesia's environment. It could well turn away foreign investors, too.

Indonesia’s neighbors need to rethink their approach.

Blame local politics.