Here are some letter styles that you may want to copy or adapt on the theme of cutting down on palm oil. We suggest you write directly to the companies and retailers that use palm oil ingredients to ask if they are aware of the problem and use sustainable alternatives if possible. Letters from children asking why their favourite product contains palm oil seem to get the best responses. We’ve prepared the letters in five different approaches – simply select the approach you feel most comfortable with and start from there…
A. Most closely aligned with our blog post article on livinglaudatosi.com
B. I value most data, evidence and logic
C. I value most relationships and feelings
D. I value most hope for the future and good news
E. I value most getting things done quickly
Happy letter writing!
Here is a letter sent by a 10 year old to the manufacturer of a popular sweet
Dear Sir/Madam,
My name is <Name> and I am 10 years old and I am very keen on two things. One is <Sweet> and the
other is protecting our planet. Unfortunately I cannot be truly happy because either I look after the
rainforests or I eat <Sweet>. I can’t do both. Why? Because I see that you use Palm Oil in <Sweet> and
this makes me cry. Please can you help me be happy by using sustainable vegetable oil. There are
alternatives to Palm Oil and I hope you can do the right thing and make this one very small change.
Thank you very much
<Name>
A. Most closely aligned with our blog post article on livinglaudatosi.com
Write to your representative. In the UK you may find this site very useful for finding your MP, how to contact them and how they would like to be addressed.
Dear <MP>,
Palm oil, alongside beef and soya and wood products from the tropics, are one of the major pressures leading to tropical forest clearing. The loss of biodiversity from our remaining tropical rainforests affects us all. I believe governments can work together to limit the destruction of the tropical forests and support the voices of the indigenous communities who are often displaced by the conversion of forests to agricultural land. There are many interconnected issues here. I understand scientists look to tropical forests for species to help with the development of future medical treatments. And they are essential carbon sinks to slow down climate change: when they are cleared they accelerate climate change because they release large quantities of carbon dioxide and are no longer there to absorb any.
The UK can and should take a leading role in supporting the indigenous communities who safeguard around 80% of the remaining biodiversity on the planet. The UK can lead by requiring palm oil imports to come from sustainable plantations. And it can work together with our international partners to value the natural ecosystems that are under threat at the moment.
Yours sincerely
Write to the product manufacturers
Dear Sir/Madam <Manufacturer>,
I noticed that your product <name> contains Palm Oil. I hope you are aware of the effect Palm Oil plantations are having on the tropical forests of Borneo and Sumatra and elsewhere? Is it possible to revert to using a more sustainable oil or one that comes from a local source? If absolutely necessary to use Palm-derived ingredients then please only use certified sustainable Palm.
The illegal conversion of rainforest to agriculture, whether for palm oil in the forests of South East Asia or for soya or beef production in the Amazon, negatively affects the indigenous communities, decimates important biodiversity (where will our next medical therapies come from?) and accelerates climate change. Land Use Change not only switches off a carbon sink, but releases huge quantities of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere that was previously locked in the forest and in the carbon-rich layers of the forest floor.
Please consider changing your ingredients to respect the planet. You can then update your packaging to make it clear that you have made a positive change and you may see people like me buying your products again.
Yours faithfully
Write to the retailers
Dear <Retailer>,
I noticed that many products you sell have palm oil in the ingredients. I hope you are aware of the effect Palm Oil plantations are having on the tropical forests of Borneo and Sumatra and elsewhere? The Orang utan and numerous other species are at risk of extinction. The plantations push the indigenous communities out of their ancestral home as a single crop replaces their forest neighbourhood and decimates the biodiversity. The greenhouse gases released as the carbon-rich forest and soils are destroyed turn a natural carbon sink into a strong emissions source.
Please can you lead on this and require all your own-brand products to avoid palm oil or use certified sustainable palm oil instead. Additionally, set a target for your suppliers to switch away from palm oil so that you can justifiably demonstrate that you are committed to protecting the tropical rainforests.
I trust you will do the right thing and put pressure on your suppliers to use alternatives or sustainable palm.
Yours sincerely <if you know your contact> faithfully <if you don’t>
B. I value most data, evidence and logic
Write to your representative. In the UK you may find this site very useful for finding your MP, how to contact them and how they would like to be addressed.
Dear <MP>,
The loss of biodiversity is increasingly seen as a serious threat by the scientific community.
Palm oil, alongside beef, soya and wood products from the tropics, are one of the four recognised pressures leading to tropical forest clearing. The loss of biodiversity from our remaining tropical rainforests affects us all. I believe governments can work together to limit the destruction of the tropical forests and support the voices of the indigenous communities who are often displaced by the conversion of forests to agricultural land. The destruction of the tropical forest has a very strong negative effect on global climate too: a carbon sink that absorbs carbon dioxide from the air is transformed into a carbon source as the trapped carbon in the living forest and in the carbon-rich forest floor is released.
The statistics suggest that our consumption of oil is outstripping our population growth by a large margin. Over the period 2000 to 2019, vegetable oil output increased by +125% when population growth was only +26%. But palm oil has increased by over three times in this same period. Even the production of the next largest oil crops of soya bean oil (also implicated in deforestation, +134%), rapeseed oil (+84%) and sunflower-seed oil (+105%) have increased in the same period by more than population growth. We are simply using far too much oil than we probably should, and certainly far more palm oil than is sustainable.
The UK can and should take a leading role in supporting the indigenous communities who safeguard around 80% of the remaining biodiversity on the planet. The UK can lead by requiring palm oil imports to come from sustainable plantations. It can require companies to account for carbon dioxide equivalent emissions associated with land use change from imports and disclose this alongside their carbon footprint reporting. It can ban palm oil and soya oil from being used in biofuels. And it can work together with our international partners to value the natural ecosystems that are under threat at the moment.
Yours sincerely
Write to the product manufacturers
Dear <Manufacturer>,
The loss of biodiversity is increasingly seen as a serious threat by the scientific community.
Palm oil, alongside beef, soya and wood products from the tropics, are one of the four recognised pressures leading to tropical forest clearing. The loss of biodiversity from our remaining tropical rainforests affects us all. As a responsible business I am confident you would like to be seen to be doing the right thing. The right thing here is to work together to limit the destruction of the tropical forests and support the voices of the indigenous communities who are often displaced by the conversion of forests to agricultural land. The destruction of the tropical forest has a very strong negative effect on global climate too: a carbon sink that absorbs carbon dioxide from the air is transformed into a carbon source as the trapped carbon in the living forest and in the carbon-rich forest floor is released. This accelerates climate change.
The statistics suggest that our consumption of vegetable oil is outstripping our population growth by a large margin. Over the period 2000 to 2019, vegetable oil output increased by +125% when population growth was only +26%. But palm oil has increased by over three times in this same period. Even the production of the next largest oil crops of soya bean oil (also implicated in deforestation, +134%), rapeseed oil (+84%) and sunflower-seed oil (+105%) have increased in the same period by more than population growth. Over the last two decades I have seen products reformulated to include palm oil where there was none before. I have seen the oil content increased from what it was before. The statistics suggest we are simply using far too much oil than we probably should, and certainly far more palm oil than is sustainable.
Please consider changing your ingredients to respect the planet. Instead of palm oil please look into using alternatives to palm oil or otherwise only use palm oil from certified sustainable plantations. You can then update your packaging to make it clear that you have made a positive change and you may see people like me buying your products again.
Be a responsible business.
Yours sincerely
Write to the retailers
Dear <Retailer>,
The loss of biodiversity is increasingly seen as a serious threat by the scientific community.
Palm oil, alongside beef, soya and wood products from the tropics, are one of the four recognised pressures leading to tropical forest clearing. The loss of biodiversity from our remaining tropical rainforests affects us all. As a responsible retail business I am confident you would like to be seen to be doing the right thing. The right thing here is to work together to limit the destruction of the tropical forests and support the voices of the indigenous communities who are often displaced by the conversion of forests to agricultural land. The destruction of the tropical forest has a very strong negative effect on global climate too: a carbon sink that absorbs carbon dioxide from the air is transformed into a carbon source as the trapped carbon in the living forest and in the carbon-rich forest floor is released.
The statistics suggest that our consumption of oil is outstripping our population growth by a large margin. Over the period 2000 to 2019, vegetable oil output increased by +125% when population growth was only +26%. But palm oil has increased by over three times in this same period. Even the production of the next largest oil crops of soya bean oil (also implicated in deforestation, +134%), rapeseed oil (+84%) and sunflower-seed oil (+105%) have increased in the same period by more than population growth. Over the last two decades I have seen products reformulated to include palm oil where there was none before. I have seen the oil content increased from what it was before. The statistics suggest we are simply using far too much oil than we probably should, and certainly far more palm oil than is sustainable.
As a responsible retailer, you can help by requiring the products you stock to use alternatives to palm oil or palm oil from certified sustainable plantations. Providing customer education may help too.
Be a responsible business.
Yours sincerely
C. I value most relationships and feelings
Write to your representative. In the UK you may find this site very useful for finding your MP, how to contact them and how they would like to be addressed.
Dear <MP>,
I am concerned about the plight of the indigenous communities who are being displaced from the tropical forests and the destruction of their ancestral land. We see the suffering of the wildlife and the felling of large areas of biodiverse forest. I would like to stand in solidarity with our indigenous brothers and sisters and protect their wonderful home that is full of beauty and diversity. Destruction of the tropical forests is happening because our economic system encourages this: land used for agriculture is valued by our economy more than virgin tropical forests are.
Please can you, on my behalf, extend a supporting hand to our cousins in need. For generations they have sensitively looked after the precious forest ecosystem for the benefit of all living things. Now we must warmly provide them with re-assurance that we respect their traditions and cultures and their biodiverse homes. We must value their age-old way of life and stop this externally imposed encroachment that is causing great harm to them and their ecosystem.
What is this destruction for? Fractions of a pence on our consumer goods? Cheaper meats for the developed world? And yet nature is crying and being suffocated.
Please imagine living in a rainforest where the sound of chainsaws and the smell of burning is getting closer to you every month. What would you do? Please help our brothers and sisters who are faced with this sound and smell of “progress”.
No palm oil product or soya or beef import that comes from rainforest cleared land should be allowed into Britain. Further, we must find a way of valuing what remains of the tropical forests so that it is economic to keep them and not destroy them.
Yours sincerely
Write to the product manufacturers
Dear <Manufacturer>,
I am concerned about the plight of the indigenous communities who are being displaced from the tropical forests and the destruction of their ancestral land. We see the suffering of the wildlife and the felling of large areas of biodiverse forest. I would like to stand in solidarity with our indigenous brothers and sisters and protect their wonderful home that is full of beauty and diversity. Destruction of the tropical forests is happening because our economic system encourages this: land used for agriculture is valued by our economy more than virgin tropical forests are.
Please can you, on my behalf, extend a supporting hand to our cousins in need. For generations they have sensitively looked after the precious forest ecosystem for the benefit of all living things. Now we must warmly provide them with re-assurance that we respect their traditions and cultures and their biodiverse homes. We must value their age-old way of life and stop this externally imposed encroachment that is causing great harm to them and their ecosystem.
What is this destruction for? Fractions of a pence off your product? And yet nature is crying and being suffocated.
Please imagine living in a rainforest where the sound of chainsaws and the smell of burning is getting closer to you every month. What would you do? Please help our brothers and sisters who are faced with this sound and smell of “progress”.
Please commit to removing ingredients that fuel the destruction of the tropical forests. And look to support the communities who suffer.
You have an opportunity to do the right thing. Seize this opportunity to build a more caring company. You might not get such a brilliant chance in the future.
Yours sincerely
Write to the retailers
Dear <Retailer>,
I am concerned about the plight of the indigenous communities who are being displaced from the tropical forests and the destruction of their ancestral land. We see the suffering of the wildlife and the felling of large areas of biodiverse forest. I would like to stand in solidarity with our indigenous brothers and sisters and protect their wonderful home that is full of beauty and diversity. Destruction of the tropical forests is happening because our economic system encourages this: land used for agriculture is valued by our economy more than virgin tropical forests are.
Please can you, on my behalf, extend a supporting hand to our cousins in need. For generations they have sensitively looked after the precious forest ecosystem for the benefit of all living things. Now we must warmly provide them with re-assurance that we respect their traditions and cultures and their biodiverse homes. We must value their age-old way of life and stop this externally imposed encroachment that is causing great harm to them and their ecosystem.
What is this destruction for? Fractions of a pence on our consumer goods? Cheaper meats for the developed world? And yet nature is crying and being suffocated.
Please imagine living in a rainforest where the sound of chainsaws and the smell of burning is getting closer to you every month. What would you do? Please help our brothers and sisters who are faced with this sound and smell of “progress”.
Please set caring standards for the products you sell. Ensure your own-brand products are free from ingredients that harm the tropical forests: no palm oil product or soya or beef import that comes from rainforest cleared land should be on your shelves. Further, make the same request for your supply chains for the other products you sell.
You have an opportunity to do the right thing. Seize this opportunity to build a more caring world respecting the wonder of nature and supporting the vulnerable indigenous communities. You might not get such great pass next to a wide-open goal in the future.
Yours sincerely
D. I value most hope for the future and good news
Write to your representative. In the UK you may find this site very useful for finding your MP, how to contact them and how they would like to be addressed.
Dear <MP>,
What if we could give hope to the indigenous communities and a positive future for all the living things in the tropical forests? What if species that were critically endangered can be saved? I believe that with your help we can give ourselves and our planet a better future.
Today it is likely that purchasing products containing palm oil or soya or buying imported beef or wood products could do harm to nature and the indigenous communities who call the tropical forests their ancestral home. But it doesn’t have to be like this. Imagine a future where we value their land for the natural beauty it really is and for the amazing biodiversity that it contains? A future where we only source palm oil and soya from sustainable plantations. A future where it makes more economic sense to keep the rainforest than to destroy it. A future where the lungs of the earth are protected for the sake of every living thing on the planet. You can be part of this positive future by raising this biodiversity challenge with your fellow legislators and international colleagues. You can help show manufacturers and retailers that, with their help, tomorrow can be better than today. We give hope to our brothers and sisters who look after the forests for us. We can support them as they protect the nature around them and save endangered species. We can safeguard these precious forests so they continue to provide oxygen for our planet.
Please start talking about this with your colleagues and start planning on making tomorrow better than today.
Yours sincerely
Write to the product manufacturers
Dear <Manufacturer>,
Imagine your company being applauded for sustainability. Winning awards for your initiatives. Attracting new customers. Yes these are possible by demonstrating your commitment to safeguarding the tropical forests. How amazing would it be if we could give hope to the indigenous communities and a positive future for all the living things in the tropical forests? How amazing would it be if species that were critically endangered could be saved? I believe that with your help we can give ourselves and our planet a better future.
Commit today to purchasing only certified sustainable palm and soya or using local sustainable alternatives instead. Commit today to a future where it makes more economic sense to keep the rainforest than to destroy it. Commit today to a future where the lungs of the earth are protected for the sake of every living thing on the planet. As a manufacturer you have great purchasing leverage and power. You can make the change. You can make tomorrow better than today. You can give hope to our brothers and sisters who look after the forests for us. You can support them as they protect the nature around them and save endangered species. You can safeguard these precious forests so they continue to provide oxygen for our planet.
Please become a positive change and make tomorrow better than today.
Yours sincerely
Write to the retailers
Dear <Retailer>,
Imagine your business being recognised as a responsible retail business. Imagine winning sustainability awards. Attracting new customers. Yes these are possible by demonstrating your commitment to safeguarding the tropical forests. How amazing would it be if we could give hope to the indigenous communities and a positive future for all the living things in the tropical forests? How amazing would it be if species that were critically endangered could be saved? I believe that with your help we can give ourselves and our planet a better future.
Commit today to stocking only products using certified sustainable palm and soya or those using local sustainable alternatives instead. Commit today to a future where it makes more economic sense to keep the rainforest than to destroy it. Commit today to a future where the lungs of the earth are protected for the sake of every living thing on the planet. As a retailer you have great purchasing leverage and power and great customer reach and responsibility. You can make the change. You can make tomorrow better than today. You can give hope to our brothers and sisters who look after the forests for us. You can support them as they protect the nature around them and save endangered species. You can safeguard these precious forests so they continue to provide oxygen for our planet.
Please become a positive change and make tomorrow better than today.
Yours sincerely
E. I value most getting things done quickly
Write to your representative. In the UK you may find this site very useful for finding your MP, how to contact them and how they would like to be addressed.
Dear <MP>,
It is not acceptable for our businesses and products to be creating economic incentives for the destruction of the tropical forests. Our purchases affect the future of the rainforests. And that future is looking bleak and is arriving too quickly. The damage is colossal in terms of loss of biodiversity and we are at risk of turning carbon sinks to huge emission sources with unforeseen global climate effects. This must be be fixed and fast. Require imports to be certified sustainable. Work with your international colleagues. In particular, work with the developing countries and listen to the voices of the indigenous communities. Rainforest destruction can be stopped and stopped right now.
Yours sincerely
Write to the product manufacturers
Dear <Manufacturer>,
It is not acceptable for your company to be using non-sustainable ingredients that come from recent rainforest-cleared land and incentivise further deforestation. Your purchase choices directly affect the future of the rainforests. And that future is looking bleak and is arriving too quickly. The damage is colossal in terms of loss of biodiversity and we are at risk of turning carbon sinks to huge emission sources with unforeseen global climate effects. This must be be fixed and fast. Only use certified sustainable palm and soya. Rainforest destruction can be stopped and stopped right now. You must play your part. No more excuses.
Yours sincerely
Write to the retailers
Dear <Retailer>,
It is not acceptable for your retail business to be stocking products using non-sustainable ingredients that come from recent rainforest-cleared land and incentivise further deforestation. Your purchase choices directly affect the future of the rainforests. And that future is looking bleak and is arriving too quickly. The damage is colossal in terms of loss of biodiversity and we are at risk of turning carbon sinks to huge emission sources with unforeseen global climate effects. This must be be fixed and fast. Only stock products with certified sustainable palm and soya and make your position clear to your supply chain. Rainforest destruction can be stopped and stopped right now. You must play your part. No more excuses.
Yours sincerely
Please note that these letter examples are original to livinglaudatosi.com and have not been previously published. They are not AI generated and have been prepared in good faith. livinglaudatosi.com asks you to think carefully about your use of language and the effect, either directly or indirectly, your letter may have.
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