Southeast Asia improves sustainability targets

Slaves sit squashed in the bow of a boat off the Gulf of Thailand after a day of trash fishing, catching the feed for the region’s many fish farms. 

 

In Malaysia, orangutans flee their natural habitats and face extinction as deforestation makes way for palm oil production. At the same time, citizens across Singapore inhale toxic fumes on a daily basis after farmers slash-and-burn their land in preparation for new crops.

 

When many people from outside the region think about Southeast Asia, they picture Thailand’s beaches, Cambodia’s temples or Sri Lanka’s jungles. It’s not the thought of slaves powering the region’s seafood industry, the overfishing damaging the coral, or ocean pollution caused by waste plastic packaging.

 

But these are some of the sustainable consumption issues impacting the region, which, along with tourism, is a major supplier of maize, soy, fish, coffee, cocoa, fruits and vegetables and palm oil across the world. 

 

Products like lipstick, tinned tuna, hand sanitizer, electronics and clothing, sold across Europe and the US, could well have contributed to harming humans, the environment, or both, in Southeast Asia (see The development dilemma). 

 

“Conventionally produced products have led to much of the social and environmental challenges facing the planet today, including climate change, deforestation, and poverty,” Cristina Larrea, lead of sustainability standards at the International Institute for Sustainable Development. told Ocki. 

 

According to sustainability research company Evidensia, climate change, nature loss and pollution pose the biggest barriers to sustainable delivery of products in Asia. 2019 data from Statista rates Southeast Asia at 3.8 out of seven in terms of environmental sustainability, which is lower than the global average. 

 

Any crop can be sustainable or unsustainable. It’s all about the manner in which we farm it

 

In addition, 58% of Asian consumers say they have been personally affected by environmental problems, according to Kantar research. It could be that their water source is polluted with plastic, their health has been affected by high levels of toxic pollution, or that the deltas they rely on for their livelihoods are “sinking and shrinking”, reports the World Wildlife Fund, as a result of too much sediment being removed for use in construction. 

 

Chris Humphrey is executive director of the EU-Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Business Council, which supports the work of Asean governments to speed up sustainable development policies. He said: “Communication is the key, explaining the advantages of developing more policies to support sustainable trade, and the disadvantages of not doing so.” 

Understanding the role of corporates

As it stands, companies are not penalised for using suppliers that exploit people – perhaps through forced labour, low wages or poor working conditions – or planet, and as a result nothing changes, said Siddharth Kara, author, researcher, screenwriter and activist on modern slavery. If more consumers knew the realities of how their food, clothes and cosmetics are made, he believes there’d be more action.

 

While some issues – such as the slavery in Southeast Asia’s seafood industry and the conditions of garment workers in Cambodia – have made the headlines in the past, awareness is a challenge for ‘hidden commodities’ such as palm oil, soybeans, and sugar that are often used to make other products, explained Larrea. Palm oil, for example, can be found in products ranging from biscuits to blusher, biodiesel to detergent. 

 

Things are getting better though, said Namit Agarwal, public policy lead of the World Benchmarking Alliance, who believes there is an increasing interest among consumers, as well as governments and companies, in sustainability. Thailand, for example, is getting better at sharing more information on labels about manufacturers, packers, or importers. 

Southeast Asia in numbers Indonesia and Malaysia produce 85% of the global supply of palm oil.  Rice is the region’s main crop. Other commodities include maize, coffee, cocoa as well as fruits and vegetables. Of the world’s top ten largest fish producers, four are from SEA: Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines. SEA rates 3.8 out of 7 in terms of environmental sustainability, which is lower than the global average. 58% of Asian consumers say they have been personally affected by environmental problems. Over half of Asians have stopped buying products and services that have a negative impact on the environment and society. Regardless of class, income and age there is equal consciousness of sustainability in the region.  58% of Southeast Asians believe safeguarding the next generation makes it worth spending more on sustainable products.  No Asean country is yet to rank in the top 40 countries for attaining the SDGs.

“This is a good starting point across Southeast Asia where consumers start looking at the impact of their food on their health, the community and the climate,” Agarwal said.

 

According to Kantar’s Asia Sustainability Foundational Study 2021, already over half of Asians have stopped buying products and services that have a negative impact on the environment and society.

 

Buying organic produce can be a first step, Agarwal explained, before consumers then begin thinking about responsible sustainability in other areas such as apparel. However, sustainable products often come at a higher price point. The United Overseas Bank found that 58% of Southeast Asians believe safeguarding the next generation makes it worth spending more on sustainable products. 

 

But in a region made up of vastly differing income levels, the ability to pay for higher priced, more sustainable products is a barrier for some, Larrea said. This is especially true following COVID-19 which saw disposable income levels decline. According to Ipsos, the market research company, it is not likely to return to pre-pandemic levels. 

 

“We have to remember that many of the countries of Southeast Asia are in very different stages of economic development compared to Europe,” said Humphrey. 

 

“If we look at the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the more important ones for many people in the Asean region relate to no hunger, access to clean water, access to decent employment, healthcare and education before worrying about the environment,” Humphrey said, adding that for higher-income countries the environment might be more of a priority. 

 

The 17 SDGs provide a roadmap for tackling a multitude of global issues by 2030 including poverty, climate change, equality and peace. Data from consultancy Bain & Company shows that no Asean country ranks within the top 40 countries attaining the SDGs.

 

“Of course, the truth is that here in Southeast Asia we have to move on all of these fronts simultaneously – achieving one does not exclude achieving the others,” Humphrey said.