All the Dutch farmland put together – almost 2.3 million hectares - or football fields if you prefer – would only just be enough to satisfy the country’s huge demand for tropical products. Luckily for the Dutch, products such as tropical wood, palm oil, and soya aren’t grown in the Netherlands – because their production is having a negative impact on local populations and biodiversity in places like Brazil, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

The findings are compiled in the report ‘Dutch trade and biodiversity’ by Wageningen University. The report only includes products from countries like Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia, but the Netherlands imports products from many other countries as well.

Benefits
In Brazil, Indonesia, and Malaysia, large areas of forest are rapidly turning into palm oil plantations,  and the forests that remain are separated by great distances. Researchers say this is leading to “a loss of the original biodiversity of plants and animals.”

On Sumatra, the habitat of orangutans is under threat. But researcher Caspar Verwey says some species are benefitting from the situation:

“When jungles are transformed into palm oil or wood plantations, species such as reptiles deal with it better than amphibians. Reptiles are even increasing in numbers.” 

Habitats
The researchers think the Netherlands can help reduce the negative effects by producing more per hectare, thereby using less land. Researchers also suggest that, when agricultural land is created, the remaining natural areas should not be separated too much. It is possible to expand agricultural land, but preferably in less valuable natural areas, says Mr Verwey.

“We believe there will be expansion in the coming years anyway. So we recommend doing that in areas where the land is less valuable. But you still have to be careful, because some of these areas are also habitats for lots of species. But you have areas that are just grassland, which could be used for these kind of developments.”

Local population
The production of soya, wood and palm oil provides work for millions of people. But the development of large-scale businesses also has a negative effect on local communities. An increase in mechanised production results in loss of jobs and therefore more poverty. The researchers think these negative effects can be counteracted by encouraging small-scale local production.

In addition, the loss of agricultural land and forests puts pressure on local food production, and the intensive use of chemicals in large plantations adversely affects the health of the local population. Wageningen University researcher Erik Arets thinks a small country like the Netherlands can set a good example:

“The Netherlands is a relatively large importer of these kinds of products. We don’t just consume them, we also process and export them on to other countries. If a country like the Netherlands takes measures and formulates policies, it sets an example.” 

Sustainability
Mr Arets says it’s possible to increase production in the future and minimalise the effect on biodiversity, if you make the right choices. For example, by introducing a quality guarantee symbol for palm oil and soya similar to the one that already exists for tropical hardwood. This way, consumers know which products were cultivated in a sustainable – or unsustainable – way.

The study ’Dutch trade and biodiversity’ was carried out for the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation.

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