SD Guthrie denies Indonesian estates caused fires

SD Guthrie has firmly refuted claims that its Indonesian subsidiaries or employees were responsible for recent forest and land fires. In a statement, the plantation group stated that the allegations lack credible evidence and emphasized that they would be corrected, as they are misleading. The company pointed out that some entities mentioned in public reports as Guthrie's affiliates are not actually owned, managed, or controlled by the group.

Guthrie also criticized outdated or inaccurate attribution to its Indonesian operations, attributing it to reliance on outdated Indonesian plantation concession maps which do not accurately reflect current ownership or boundaries. The oil palms in the affected areas, according to Guthrie, are young and productive, making it operationally illogical and inconsistent for the group to deliberately start the fires.

With a zero-burning policy since 1985 and a commitment to no deforestation or activities on peatland, Guthrie is equipped with 67 firefighting teams and 1,005 trained personnel supported by drone and infrared monitoring. The company spends approximately 3.5 billion rupiah per month on these resources. Between January and September, Guthrie's teams responded to and extinguished 2,411 fires, with 2,376 occurring on community land.

Guthrie reiterated its efforts to tackle fires outside its concessions are to prevent them and would continue working with Indonesian authorities. The company called for corrections to any inaccurate data or ownership attribution and remains open to constructive engagement with stakeholders to prevent fires and protect communities and the environment.