Call me pessimistic, but I assume the reasons are entirely economic, and one or all of the below apply, unless proven otherwise:
a) the areas are not productive, or are projected to be, so are being abandoned
b) they’ll fell 200+k hectares of more productive forest to compensate
c) a reduction in palm sugar utilization has crashed the price, forcing them to reduce production to stay profitable.
Never believe some capitalist, or the governments they own, does anything for altruistic purposes… It’s always about profit — any justification to the contrary is spin.
Edit: just read the story. 200k is one years worth of deforestation at the current rate, and only like 1.1% of existing palm oil plantations. May be good, but generally inconsequential.
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