A substance that shares common features of its source(s) while also providing unique and distinct performance and functionality in an application.  They are products of physical and/or chemical transformations from the parent material(s) and have their own entries on ingredient lists and regulations.

Palm oil and palm kernel oil can replicate similar properties to traditional feedstocks such as animal fat (tallow), petroleum-based byproducts, soy biodiesel byproducts (for materials such as glycerol), and coconut oil (grown in the same tropical regions). When companies want a vegan product or a product not derived from fossil fuels, palm oil/palm kernel oil offers similar functionality and a lower carbon footprint, especially when sourced sustainably.

Fossil-based items such as glycerol will have a higher carbon footprint.  Soy may have a lower carbon footprint than traditionally grown palm since the land was cleared over 50+ years ago.

For many ingredients, palm sourcing may be more readily available than synthetic feedstocks.  There may also be cost or certification considerations that may make palm more attractive than synthetic feedstocks.

For a product or ingredient to be certified sustainable according to RSPO Standards, every company that takes possession of a palm derivative must be an RSPO member, and every RSPO member that alters the palm derivative in any way must be RSPO Certified. As derivatives get more complex and the palm oil/palm kernel oil volume in the ingredient becomes a lower percentage of the overall product, there are often more companies involved in the supply chain. This means that there are more stakeholders to partner with to make sure all actors connected to the palm derivative are RSPO members and RSPO Certified. This very important work requires a lot of engagement and can become more complicated when palm is a tiny fraction of the overall ingredient. To assist in this process, NASPON has developed some resources to help identify palm derivatives as well as a tool to better engage suppliers.

C6-C14 products can only be produced from palm kernel oil, C16-C18 can be made from both palm oil and palm kernel oil.

The NASPON Derivatives List is a tool created by the Derivatives Working Group. This list is not a complete list of all ingredients that contain palm oil but is representative of  many ingredients that this group identified as common ingredients that can (or often do) contain palm oil/palm kernel oil, derivatives of palm oil/palm kernel oil, or fractionations of palm oil/palm kernel oil.

This list is intended to help you map your supply chains and identify which of your ingredients may contain palm oil or palm kernel oil. To confirm if your ingredients that you are sourcing have palm oil or palm kernel oil as a feedstock, it is advised to work directly with your supplier for confirmation. To assess the overall volume of palm oil in your ingredients, please use the RSPO Rules for Oleochemicals and Derivatives.

This document is intended to be a living document, so if you have any feedback or would like to provide input, please email info@NASPONgroup.org. Updated versions of this list will be made available as NASPON continues incorporating feedback and comments.

While RSPO Credits, particularly smallholder credits, are a great option to cover non-certified derivatives to ensure they are contributing to production of Certified Sustainable Palm Oil, the best option is to engage with your direct suppliers to get them RSPO Certified. This involves your suppliers needing to engage their suppliers, and so on, until every company that alters the product throughout the supply chain is an RSPO member and RSPO Certified, so it will take some time and partnership to achieve. The RSPO staff are available as a resource to assist with onboarding partners and suppliers.

As a matter of principle, the company purchasing the feedstock should undertake reasonable effort to determine the origin of the feedstock. Apart from checking the ‘Standard’ information already provided in delivery notes or shipping documents, this should include inquiring with the supplier of the feedstock. 

If it is not possible to obtain details on the origin of the feedstock no RSPO claim can be attached to the product.

The RSPO has resources for factors that you can find in their key resources section of their website here. Factors help a company to identify what the volume value of palm oil/palm kernel oil is for common derivatives to ensure you are purchasing the correct amount of RSPO Credits or RSPO Certified material. For example, mono/diglycerides have a factor of 1 (100%) whereas sodium stearate has a factor of 0.9 (90%) in the Mass Balance Scheme.

If you have your own factors that you use, they should be documented in your procedures and communicated to end customers. Per the RSPO standard:

• The factors should be rounded to one significant figure: e.g. 0.1 or 0.01 rather than 0.14 or 0.013.  Standard rounding rules also apply.
• For an item that is a blend of palm and non-palm inputs, the factor is the weighted sum of all palm components or contributions.  There is no requirement in the standard to break it down to individual ingredients.

Some customers may prefer reporting based on percentages rather than decimals and could ask for: RSPO Factor, % Palm, or % RSPO.

You can learn more about the RSPO Supply Chain Certification and find a detailed example of an auditor checklist on the RSPO website here. Overall, the details of the audit are determined by the supply chain for which a company is seeking to obtain certification (i.e. Mass Balance, Segregated, or Identity Preserved). Each supply chain has different levels of requirements for segregation/separation throughout the supply chain, while Mass Balance requires the ability to maintain accounting of volumes. The first step is to become an RSPO member, and then reach out to a third-party certification body to discuss further details of your audit and scope.

SG derivatives are starting to appear on the market.  To produce SG derivatives:

• May need separate production lines to maintain SG through their facility.
• Source and approve the necessary SG starting materials
• Implement necessary procedures
• Obtain an SG certification