InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – Indonesia's Sustainable Palm Oil Farmers Union (SPKS) has urged the government to increase investment in sustainable palm oil certification, arguing that stronger financial support—particularly through the Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (BPDP)—is essential to improve smallholder productivity and strengthen the long-term competitiveness of the country's palm oil industry.

In a statement received by InfoSAWIT on Friday (June 26), SPKS said certification costs and technical assistance should become national priorities to enable more independent oil palm smallholders to meet both Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil (ISPO) and Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) standards.

The organization also encouraged plantation companies to play a more active role in financing certification programs, noting that independent smallholders remain the primary suppliers of fresh fruit bunches (FFB) to the downstream palm oil industry. Supporting farmers' certification, SPKS said, should therefore be viewed as a shared responsibility across the supply chain.

The call is reinforced by recent findings from the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS), which concluded that raising smallholder productivity could generate significant economic gains for Indonesia. Independent growers currently manage about 41% of the country's oil palm planted area but continue to record lower yields than large commercial plantations.

Previous studies have shown that implementing Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) through certification schemes can increase plantation productivity by between 9% and 20%.

SPKS Chairman Sabarudin said the organization's own experience demonstrates that certification delivers measurable improvements in farm management and production.

Currently, 13 cooperatives representing approximately 3,076 SPKS members managing 6,204 hectares have obtained either RSPO or ISPO certification. According to Sabarudin, productivity has increased following the certification process.

"Certification strengthens farmers' capacity through better plantation management, stronger cooperative institutions, standardized operating procedures, and wider adoption of Good Agricultural Practices," he said.

Beyond meeting compliance requirements, certification also provides technical training, field mentoring, organizational development, and more efficient plantation management systems, all of which contribute to higher productivity and improved farmer incomes.

SPKS noted that RSPO certification has also generated additional revenue through sustainability credit sales, enabling cooperatives to strengthen traceability systems, build member capacity, finance organizational operations, and invest further in sustainable farming.

However, the organization acknowledged that the sustainability credit market has slowed in recent years, limiting farmers' ability to monetize all available credits. This highlights the need for more consistent market incentives to ensure certification continues delivering tangible economic benefits.

Looking ahead, SPKS believes ISPO implementation should also be accompanied by incentive schemes that reward certified growers. Since farmers must invest considerable resources to comply with certification requirements, financial incentives should offset those costs while improving livelihoods.

"Incentives are the key to making certification truly sustainable. Farmers have already invested to meet certification standards, so both the government and the market need to ensure they receive lasting economic returns," Sabarudin said.

SPKS added that certification and mentoring costs remain one of the biggest barriers facing independent smallholders. The organization therefore urged the government to allocate larger budgets for certification expansion, with BPDP funding identified as the most strategic financing mechanism.

According to SPKS, existing ISPO regulations already provide a legal basis for using BPDP funds to finance certification programs. The organization also called for simpler application procedures to make certification more accessible for smallholders.

Accelerating certification through stronger BPDP support, SPKS said, would not only improve sustainability across Indonesia's palm oil sector but also help raise smallholder productivity and contribute to the country's long-term target of producing 100 million tonnes of palm oil by 2045. (T2)