We use cookies on this site to enhance your online experience. By continuing to use this site, you agree to accept cookies.
Forest certification provides a mechanism to promote the sustainable management of our forests and ensures that forest-based products reaching the marketplace have been sourced from sustainably managed forests.
Forests are highly diverse; as is their management, local traditions, cultural and spiritual expectations, average property sizes and support structures. This diversity means one size does not fit all when it comes to forest certification.
This is why PEFC does not set one international standard that all forest owners must follow in order to achieve certification. Instead, PEFC works through national forest certification systems, enabling countries to tailor their sustainable forest management requirements to their specific forest ecosystems, the legal and administrative framework, the socio-cultural context and other relevant factors.
PEFC requires conformance with international benchmarks for sustainability. For example, PEFC requires that all the relevant stakeholders are involved in the development of a national system. This means they participate in determining what sustainable forest management means within their country and how it can best be implemented locally. Having stakeholders from several different backgrounds also ensures that one interest cannot dominate the process, as all parties need to agree on the final requirements of the national standard.
This is key to the success of PEFC, as it empowers those managing forests – small- and private forest owners, communities and companies – to do so in compliance with the standards that they themselves helped develop.
Endorsement is our process to ensure that national forest certification systems meet our international requirements. It is so vital to our organization, it’s even in our name - the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification.
Once developed, national systems go through a rigorous assessment process that lasts around nine months. To ensure the process is independent, the assessment is done by a third-party assessor and not by PEFC. Systems that complete this process successfully become ‘PEFC-endorsed’.
In practical terms, this means that forest-based products certified to a PEFC-endorsed national system are considered PEFC-certified anywhere in the world, and are eligible to carry our PEFC label.
PEFC chain of custody certification enables you to demonstrate your legal and sustainable sourcing of forest products to your customers.
From small and medium-sized enterprises to global brands, more and more companies along the timber value chain are looking to demonstrate that the forest-based materials they are using come from legal and sustainable sources.
Some are doing so in response to legislation and regulatory requirements, others realize the benefits of delivering sustainability assurances on products to address environmental, social and ethical concerns.
Regardless of the motivation, the preferred tool for companies to demonstrate legal and sustainable sourcing of forest products is PEFC chain of custody certification.
Governments around the world have put in place legislation designed to support the trade of legal timber and to deny the entry of illegally-produced wood products into the marketplace. This includes the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR), the U.S. Lacey Act, and the Australian Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation. PEFC chain of custody certification is designed to allow you to demonstrate compliance with such legislative requirements, giving you access to these influential markets.
Demonstrating commitment to curb deforestation, conserve biodiversity and act socially responsible, public and private buyers often go beyond legal requirements and demand assurance of forest sustainability. For example, nearly 30 national governments have already put in place sustainable timber procurement policies. Similarly, a growing number of companies demand proof of sustainability from their suppliers, with influential business associations like the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) encouraging companies to insist on certification such as PEFC.
With 60% of the world's certified forests under PEFC certification (more than 300 million hectares), you have access to a large supply of PEFC-certified wood and non-wood forest products. Over 20,000 companies worldwide hold PEFC chain of custody certification, ensuring there is a wide variety of PEFC-certified products available on the market.
Ethical consumption is on the rise, as market research has repeatedly shown over the past years. Certification allows you and your customers to use the PEFC label, and an overwhelming majority of consumers globally - more than 80% - want companies to use labels on products, according to the first PEFC/GfK Global Consumer Survey. 30% of all consumers said that they actively look for forest certification labels, with the PEFC label being the most trusted global forest certification label.
Steps in becoming certified to the standards: