puc-header

Coconut Oil, Conservation and the Conscientious Consumer

36 Pages Posted: 24 Apr 2020 Publication Status: Published

See all articles by Erik Meijaard

Erik Meijaard

University of Kent - Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology

Jesse Abrams

University of Exeter; Future Earth - The EARTH Commission

Diego Juffe-Bignoli

UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC)

Maria Voigt

University of Kent - Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology

Douglas Sheil

Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) - Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management

More...

Abstract

Consumption has consequences, and conscientious consumers increasingly seek sound guidance to reduce their impact. Objective guidance is, however, rarely available. A case in point is coconut production which is generally considered to have low environmental impact. We demonstrate that for one impact measure of all major oil crops — threatened species per volume produced — coconut, together with maize, affect far more species than all other major oil crops, including palm oil. Our analysis indicates that the public discourse about crop impact is distorted. What ethical consumers need is unbiased information based on transparent and objective measures that address multiple concerns, costs and impacts, and allow fair comparisons between products.

Keywords: Coconut, biodiversity, Conservation, sustainable development goals, vegetable oil crop, oil palm, tropics, deforestation, IUCN Red List

Suggested Citation

Meijaard, Erik and Abrams, Jesse and Juffe-Bignoli, Diego and Voigt, Maria and Sheil, Douglas, Coconut Oil, Conservation and the Conscientious Consumer. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3575129 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3575129
This version of the paper has not been formally peer reviewed.

Erik Meijaard (Contact Author)

University of Kent - Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology ( email )

United Kingdom

Jesse Abrams

University of Exeter ( email )

Northcote House
The Queen's Drive
Exeter, Devon EX4 4QJ
United Kingdom

Future Earth - The EARTH Commission ( email )

Diego Juffe-Bignoli

UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) ( email )

219 Huntingdon Road
Cambridge, CB3 0DL
United Kingdom

Maria Voigt

University of Kent - Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology ( email )

United Kingdom

Douglas Sheil

Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) - Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management ( email )

Norway

Click here to go to Cell.com

Paper statistics

Downloads
104
Abstract Views
4,579
PlumX Metrics