*5.1. Overview Indonesian Oil Palm Sector*

The palm oil value chain has a distinct hourglass shape (Figure 7). Upstream there are vast conglomerates that own plantations covering hundreds of thousands of hectares and may be involved in all stages of the value chain. At the other extreme are millions of smallholders that own only a small plot and sell their produce at the farmgate. In between are many shades of grey, ranging from smaller groups, independent large-scale plantations, investors owning a hundred hectares, farmer groups and independent farmers who accumulated multiple small plots over time. Their produce is eventually processed in just over 1000 mills [87], subsequently sold to a few dozen refinery companies, which subsequently supply a few trading companies, that sell their products to a vast number of stakeholders as consumer goods companies and retailers [88].

**Figure 7.** Schematic structure of the oil palm value chain [26].
