Orang-utans Go Ape in Tesco

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PRESS RELEASE

Orang-utans Go Ape in Tesco

Oct 29

Two life-size orang-utans will go shopping in Tesco

today (Saturday 29th October 2005) to highlight how

the UK supermarket is threatening the survival of

their species. The action will be just one of 90

protests against Tesco around the country to raise

awareness of the plight of the orang-utan.

 

The apes are at risk because rainforests in South East

Asia are being destroyed to make way for palm oil

plantations, with palm oil now found in one in ten

supermarket products in the UK.

 

Friends of the Earth wrote to Tesco, Britain's biggest

supermarket, at the beginning of 2005 and asked them

to trace their palm oil and adopt minimum production

standards. But Tesco refused. Their failure to act

means that Tesco shoppers are unwittingly contributing

to rainforest destruction and the extinction of Asia's

only great ape.

 

The orang-utans will be supported by Friends of the

Earth campaigners around the country talking to

shoppers about the threat posed to the orang-utan by

Tesco [1]. Research published by Friends of the Earth

last month found that the species could face

extinction within just 12 years unless urgent action

is taken to prevent their habitat being destroyed [2].

 

 

Campaigners, wearing orang-utan masks, will be asking

members of the public to send postcards to MPs urging

action to stop UK companies contributing to

environmental destruction overseas. The UK Government

is about to introduce a bill to Parliament on company

law and Friends of the Earth wants the Government to

ensure that company directors have a duty to minimise

the destructive impacts of their activities on the

environment.

 

Friends of the Earth Palm Oil Campaigner Ed Matthew

said:

 

" Palm oil is found in one in 10 products in our

supermarkets and is threatening the survival of the

orang-utan. But Tesco is refusing to do anything about

it. We want Tesco and other supermarkets to find ways

of sourcing palm oil which do not destroy precious

rainforest. And we want the UK Government to act to

stop British companies profiting from the destruction

of the environment overseas. Customers don't want to

buy products linked to rainforest destruction or be

responsible for the extinction of species like the

orang-utan. "

 

ENDS

 

 

Notes:

 

 

[1] Details of the participating groups are available

from the press office at Friends of the Earth.

 

 

[2] See The Oil for Ape Scandal: How palm oil

threatens orang-utan survival. The report summary is

available at:

www.foe.co.uk/resource/reports/oil_for_ape_summary.pdf

 

 

 

Full report:

www.foe.co.uk/resource/reports/oil_for_ape_full.pdf

 

 

 

 

Orang-utan images can be downloaded from:

www.foe.co.uk/resource/images/orangutan_report/

 

 

Michelle Desilets

BOS UK

www.savetheorangutan.org.uk

www.savetheorangutan.info

" Primates Helping Primates "

 

Please sign our petition to rescue over 100 smuggled orangutans in Thailand:

http://www.thePetitionSite.com/takeaction/822035733

 

 

 

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