Palm oil is a commonly used ingredient in soaps, but what many people don’t know is that it is also the main cause of forest destruction in Indonesia and a huge threat to the few remaining orang utans. When we discovered that forests are being cut down and replaced by palm oil plantations, we decided we had to take action. We have now developed our own palm-free soap base for all our soaps and also support the important work of the Sumatran Orangutan Society (SOS).
SOS is dedicated to the conservation of Sumatran orang utans and their forest home. They raise awareness of the threats facing wild orang utans and, together with a team of committed Indonesian conservationists, work with local communities to plant trees and provide training to help them protect their forests.
Charity Pot provided funding for SOS’s Gunung Leuser National Park Replanting Project. With the help of Charity Pot, and in partnership with the local villagers, SOS have started replanting the first of 35,000 trees on 60 hectares of land that had been illegally destroyed by a palm oil company. The local communities are an integral part of this process, so SOS have been organising discussion groups and educational outreach through film screenings. This project is ongoing, we’ll keep you posted on the progress through our website.
If you would like to support SOS, please visit their website www.orangutans-sos.org.
