Malaysia, Indonesia may take palm oil issue to WTO

Kuala Lumpur

MALAYSIA and Indonesia plan to raise the prospect of European Union curbs on the imports of palm oil with the World Trade Organization (WTO), both countries said in a joint statement on Sunday.

A resolution by the European Parliament in April called for the EU to phase out by 2020 the use of vegetable oils in biodiesel that are produced in an unsustainable way leading to deforestation. The resolution includes palm oil, an important commodity for Indonesia and Malaysia, which produce nearly 90 per cent of the world's palm oil.