Australia's delays on palm oil labelling 'hastening deforestation and orangutan deaths'

Environmentalists say mandatory labelling on food would limit demand for palm oil products and reduce destructive impact of plantations

Environmentalists have warned that Australia's repeated delays on mandatory palm oil labelling are allowing deforestation and the destruction of orangutan habitats to continue unabated.

A proposal requiring palm oils to be specifically listed on food labels has now been under consideration by Australian and New Zealand ministers for more than five years.