Palm Oil plantations are on the rise in central america and many tourists encounter them in Costa Rica as they search for virgin territory to spy wildlife before man arrived. On this quest that leads many through the Oil Palm plantations of Parrita on their way to destinations as exotic as Manuel Antonio National Park or Corcovado further south you will drive or fly over 40 thousand hectares of this “fruit”.
See these powerful links to get a greater grasp of this issue:
Scientists are warning us before it is too late
Social impact of Oil Palm workers is surprising to look at.
Bio fuels from this oil may increase the problem enormously.
To quote an article from WWF “Global production of palm oil has doubled over the last decade. By 2000, palm oil was the most produced and traded vegetable oil (FAO 2002), accounting for 40% of all vegetable oils traded internationally. By 2006, the percentage had risen to 65% (FAO)Worldwide demand for palm oil is expected to double again by 2020. New plantations are being developed and existing ones are being expanded in Indonesia, Malaysia and other Asian countries, as well as in Africa and Latin America. But this expansion comes at the expense of tropical forest – which forms critical habitat for a large number of endangered species.”.
CRNC toured the plantations with local guides and found a surprising panorama to educate your own views, see our unedited tour here, below is the exact location of our short tour. Thank you following CRNC and stay tuned for more info on the efforts to find friendlier alternatives to our current agricultural needs.
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Costa Rica Nature Conservatory 