Decentralised certified palm oil production, Sierra Leone Note: This project has been cancelled, because it has been withdrawn by the applicant, at an early stage.The applicant in this project proposal is the Tanzanian registered company Biolands International Ltd., registered in 1992. In Tanzania, Biolands International collects cocoa from small farmers and sells it at the export market. The local partner is Bio United Company Ltd. (registered in 2008), a daughter company of Biolands International Ltd.. In Sierra Leone, Bio United also collects cocoa from small farmers and exports it mainly to Europe. Furthermore, there is a third partner called African Organic Products. This company will only provide a financial guarantee.The aim of this project is to collect palm fruit bunches from small-scale farmers. The fruit bunches will be pressed to produce Crude Palm Oil (CPO). Bio United would like to install two presses in the Kailahun and Kono District, Eastern Region really at the village level. As Bio United is already a daughter company of Biolands International Ltd., no separate joint venture will be established.Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)The CPO will be UTZ certified. Furthermore, Biolands International Ltd. has a strict CSR policy.Impact•	Employment and working conditionsIn total, 43 new staff will be employed under fixed contracts with salaries set at least 20% higher than minimum wage. Staff is hired under decent contracts with good fringe benefits and fair living wages. All international and national rules as well as certification regulations for staff are adhered to, and many of them will also be externally controlled. For example, there is a UTZ salary audit.•	Innovation / Transfer of knowledgePalm oil mills are not new for the country, however, this industry has collapsed nearly entirely due to the war. In the revitalisation of this industry, the following aspects of this project can be considered innovative.First of all, this project will introduce UTZ certified CPO. This will also lead to higher prices for the farmers.Secondly, Bio United uses a collection scheme which is incorporated at the village level. They use a system in which local representatives are chosen by the villagers, who will be responsible for the collection, payment and training of the farmers. Bio United is the only company which works with this system.Furthermore, the two planned mills will be established at the village level in the middle of the bush. These medium-sized mills fill the gap between the large scale plantations and the small-scale artisanal mills.Furthermore, Bio United is the only company which can guarantee full traceability of the palm oil.•	Chain effectsImpact on local suppliersA total of 80 nurseries will be set up, each and every one with local materials such as sheds, wheelbarrows, watering cans, machetes etc. Most of these are locally produced (90%). Tools will be purchased at market prices.Packaging materials and other consumables for CPO will bought locally.Over 15,000 farmers will sell their FFB to Bio-United Co. Ltd, UTZ standards oblige the operators to pay a transparent UTZ premium above the world market price.Impact on local customers or consumersThe idea is that the palm oil will be sold on the local market. The majority of the current palm oil sold on the local market is produced with very basic and unhygienic production methods. This palm oil will be of a higher quality.•	Impact on the sectorBio United has a very good relationship with all kind of NGOs and Sierra Leone Government institutes and will continue to seek collaboration to assist their outgrowers in better deals.Indirect, employment will be created through the purchase of nursery tools and CPO consumables. In addition the many nurseries will all act as separate SMEs and will therefore generate income generating activities at very remote rural level.•	Impact on food safetyPalm oil is part of the daily diet of the Sierra Leoneans. Although the country is full of oil palms a lot of palm oil is still being imported because the shortage of local processing facilities is the missing link between palm oil cultivation and the market. The set up of two small-scale rural palm oil facilities for the production of UTZ certified CPO. The palm fruit bunches will be collected from a farmer network consisting of at least 15,000 small farmers.