No smoke without fire: Smallholders’ view from ground zero of the haze

[SINGAPORE] Every year, Indonesia’s US$36 billion palm oil industry grapples with a dry season that threatens production, pushes up crude palm oil (CPO) prices and draws public scrutiny as haze clouds South-east Asian skies.

Indonesia’s 10 largest palm oil corporate groups control more than three-quarters of the country’s total CPO-refining capacity annually.

Since the severe haze that blanketed the region in 2015, these corporations have invested billions into satellite and drone monitoring, firefighting teams and various programmes to prevent fires around their concessions.