US bans Sime Darby palm oil products over forced labour risks

The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has banned products from palm oil producer Sime Darby Plantation Bhd over concerns regarding forced labour.

“The issuance of a Withhold Release Order against Sime Darby Plantation palm oil is based on information that reasonably indicates the presence of all 11 of the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) forced labour indicators in Sime Darby Plantation’s production process,” it said in a statement today.

With the issuance of the order, CBP said its personnel at all US ports of entry will detain palm oil and any products containing palm oil that are produced by Sime Darby and related entities in Malaysia.

When contacted, a Sime Darby spokesperson said the company will issue a response tomorrow.

The CBP previously imposed similar sanctions against Top Glove Corp Bhd and FGV Holdings Bhd earlier this year, also due to allegations of forced labour.

Both companies denied the allegations, but also said they have taken measures to improve the wellbeing of their employees.

For the record, the ILO forced labour indicators are: abuse of vulnerability, deception, movement restriction, isolation, physical and sexual violence, intimidation and threats, retention of identity documents, withholding of wages, debt bondage, abusive working and living conditions, and excessive overtime.

“The presence of a single indicator in a given situation may in some cases imply the existence of forced labour.

“However, in other cases, you may need to look for several indicators which, taken together, point to a forced labour case,” said a 2012 ILO booklet explaining the indicators.

In October, Human Resources Minister M Saravanan had said “another big firm” was about to face action by the CBP, and Sime Darby openly expressed concern it is next in line after US authorities imposed sanctions on FGV.

The company said on Oct 2 that it had attempted to engage CBP regarding allegations by the Hong Kong-based anti-human trafficking NGO Liberty Shared.

The NGO had petitioned the CBP regarding allegations of forced labour and child labour, but Sime Darby said at the time that it had responded to those allegations and was putting in place a plan to address any “lapses”.

“Despite our attempts to engage with the CBP, we have not had the opportunity to provide any explanation and neither has Sime Darby been provided details of the allegation by Liberty Shared,” the company said at the time.

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