To address the urgent need for resilient palm oil supply chains, IDH and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), with support from Proforest, brought together more than 200 stakeholders on 9 June 2026 for the Europe Sustainable Palm Oil Dialogue (SPOD). With the theme, Resilience in Palm Oil: Thriving in a Turbulent World, participants explored how a focus on climate, nature and people can create long-term market advantage and resilient supply chains.
Smallholder inclusion was a recurring topic throughout the programme, recognised as essential for resilient and deforestation-free supply chains. The dialogue also highlighted how nature-positive solutions and landscape and jurisdictional approaches can strengthen resilience since sustainability issues are addressed at a geographical level, increasing the potential to drive impact beyond the individual farm or plantation level.
The industry was reminded that resilience is a continued state of progress and was encouraged to learn from issues within the supply chain and build resilience into their business design. “Resilience comes from ensuring that sustainability remains a business imperative,” Inke Van Der Sluijs, Director Market Transformation concluded.
The event was hosted at Chester Zoo, located in the world’s first sustainable palm oil city, connecting supply chain discussions directly to wildlife and nature conservation. Throughout the day, participants had the opportunity to take part in guided zoo discovery walks, learning about the impacts of deforestation on species and how sustainable palm oil sourcing can contribute to protecting critical habitats.
Don’t assume that the work on palm oil is done.
Despite the high uptake of certified sustainable palm oil in Europe, which is above 90%, significant effort is needed to build consumer awareness and trust and drive behaviour change, so that demand can continue to reward companies and smallholders investing in sustainable production.
Outlook on the Global Palm Oil Sector
Also at the event, IDH launched its Global Palm Oil Outlook 2025 report, examining how changing market dynamics are reshaping the sector. The report explores two important questions: What is preventing the sector from achieving deforestation-free, independent smallholder-inclusive palm oil from resilient landscapes at scale? And which pathways are most likely to overcome those constraints?
The report finds that demand is shifting away from the markets that have historically driven sustainability. Consumption in the EU fell by around 44% between 2019-2020 and 2024-2025, while Indonesia’s grew by roughly 39%, raising the risk of a split between regulated and conventional markets. It also warns that independent smallholders, who produce 35–40% of the world’s palm oil but supply only around 8% of RSPO Certified volumes, risk passive exclusion as sourcing consolidates around traceable supply. To protect long-term resilience, the report points to the need for renewed investment in smallholder inclusion, traceability, and demand in emerging markets, so that sustainable production continues to be commercially rewarded across the supply chain.
SPOD 2026 reinforced the importance of collective action and investing in people, nature and climate to help the sustainable palm oil supply chain remain resilient in a market tested by policy shifts, traceability demands and trade volatilities.
