Jakarta. The Indonesian Palm Oil Association, or Gapki, has confirmed that by next year all of its members will have the coveted Indonesian Sustainable Palm Oil, or ISPO, certification. 

The association said this will help put ISPO on par with other international standards for sustainability. 

"Currently 67 percent, or around 502 companies, in the association already have the ISPO certification. By 2020, we aim to have all of our members certified," Gapki chairman Joko Supriyono said in Jakarta on Tuesday. 

Joko said the ISPO certification, which guarantees sustainable practices are being followed in oil palm plantations, will be imperative in combating various accusations of irresponsible farming practices from Western countries.

"Once you have the ISPO certification, you can be sure that your plantation is in the clear. Hopefully, this will earn us some goodwill from the market," Joko said.

The head of the ISPO secretariat, Aziz Hidayat, said that up until this month, 556 ISPO certificates have been issued to 556 companies, six independent co-operatives and four village co-operatives (KUD). The total area that has earned ISPO certification is 5.2 million hectares.

Aziz said earning the certification has proved to be no easy feat, since many village landholders only have rudimentary land certificates that make verifying certain landholdings extremely challenging.