From rainforest to store shelf

Science · Rainforests · ages 9-11

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Which rainforest product often ends up in tyres and rubber gloves?
- Timber
- Rubber
- Soy
Which of these is NOT a rainforest-linked product found in everyday life?
- Granite
- Palm oil
- Rubber
Palm oil usually travels through steps like a mill and a factory before it reaches a supermarket shelf.
Circle one: True False
You read 'sodium palmate' on a soap label. Which rainforest product is hiding in that name?
- Palm oil
- Soy
- Timber
Palm fruit is picked at a farm. What usually happens right after that, before it becomes soap or biscuits?
- It goes straight to a store shelf
- It gets planted as a new tree
- It gets crushed for oil at a mill
Any product containing palm oil is automatically bad for rainforests, no matter what the label shows.
Circle one: True False
Mia says, 'Palm oil only shows up in food like biscuits.' What's wrong with her statement?
- Palm oil never appears in any food
- Palm oil only appears in rubber products
- Palm oil also shows up in things like soap and cosmetics
Ben picks crackers with a Rainforest Alliance frog logo instead of a regular brand. What does that logo most likely tell him?
- The crackers contain no palm oil at all
- The crackers were grown using practices that protect the rainforest
- The crackers are always the cheapest option

Answer key

For grown-ups. Fold this page away before handing over the rest.

Rubber · Rubber trees, grown in and near rainforests, provide the latex used to make tyres and gloves.
Granite · Granite is mined rock, not grown in a rainforest. Palm oil and rubber both come from rainforest-region plants.
True · The fruit is harvested, crushed into oil at a mill, then turned into products like soap or biscuits before it's sold.
Palm oil · Sodium palmate is a common ingredient name made from palm oil, so it links straight back to rainforest plantations.
It gets crushed for oil at a mill · The mill crushes the fruit to get the oil out before it becomes an ingredient in other products.
False · Certified sustainable palm oil, like Rainforest Alliance products, comes from farms that protect the forest instead of clearing it.
Palm oil also shows up in things like soap and cosmetics · Palm oil hides in many non-food items too, including soap, shampoo, and cosmetics.
The crackers were grown using practices that protect the rainforest · The certification shows sustainable farming was used. It doesn't promise no palm oil or a lower price.