Company that bakes Girl Scout cookies is yet to implement a zero-deforestation policy

Apr 25, 2014 13:06 GMT  ·  By

As tasty as they might be, it appears that Girl Scout cookies are not exactly environmentally friendly. On the contrary, there are some who claim that they need be linked to both rainforest destruction and social conflict. This is due to the fact that the palm oil used to make them does not come from sustainable sources.

According to Mongabay, it was back in 2007 that two 11-year-old Girl Scouts by the name Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen drew attention to the fact that companies that were in the business of baking Girl Scout cookies were using palm oil linked to deforestation and were, therefore, to blame for the destruction of orangutan habitat.

The girls launched a campaign intended to raise awareness about this issue and ended up convincing the Kellog Company to implement a zero-deforestation policy and cut all ties with palm oil suppliers whose working agenda was anything but environmentally friendly.

In case anyone was wondering what the Kellog Company had to do with this, the answer is pretty straightforward: one of its subsidiaries, i.e. Little Brownie Bakers, makes profit by baking and marketing Girl Scout cookies.

One would think that, following the Kellogg Company's decision to implement a no-deforestation policy, the entire conundrum would have been over in no time. As it turns out, this was not the case. On the contrary, it is not yet possible to eat Girl Scout cookies without feeling bad about it. Provided that one does not want to be an accomplice to rainforest destruction, that is.

Thus, Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen claim that ABC Bakers, i.e. another company that bakes Girl Scout cookies, has not yet implemented a zero-deforestation policy. This means that the palm oil it uses to make the cookies might be linked to the destruction of orangutan habitat and social conflict.

“ABC Bakers has not yet adopted similar policies, so some Girl Scout cookies still contribute to human rights abuses and the destruction of the endangered orangutans' habitat,” Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen told the press in a recent interview.

“Unfortunately, we have not been able to speak with anyone at the company, as they have informed us that all communication must go directly through Girl Scouts USA,” the Girl Scouts went on to say.

The news that Girl Scout cookies might be linked to deforestation and social conflict comes shortly after environmental group Greenpeace lashed out at P&G over its use of palm oil coming from unsustainable sources. The company put up quite a fight, but it eventually gave into demands to green up its working agenda without delay.