Burning rainforest on Sumatra to make space for palm oil plantations, Indonesia

Large areas of Indonesia's rainforests have been converted to oil palm plantations, driven by rising global demand for the cheap vegetable oil popular with food manufacturers and as a renewable fuel (biofuel). Palm oil and palm kernel oil now make up one of the largest shares of global vegetable oil supply, with Indonesia and Malaysia accounting for 83% of global production. The rapid increase in plantation acreage is, however, one of the greatest threats to orangutans and forests on which they depend.