WHAT IS THAT
The Forest Stewardship Council ® (FSC ® ) is an independent Non Governmental Organization founded in 1993 by various environmental and social organisations, representatives of commerce and industry, associations of indigenous peoples, forest communities and forest product certification bodies.FSC has introduced voluntary certification standards concerning: forest management and product traceability (called Chain of Custody ) in order to guarantee that a certain product is made with material from responsibly managed forests.
FSC certificates can only be issued by those who, like CSQA, have FSC accreditation by the independent organization Assurance Services International (ASI).
CSQA is accredited for the FSC Chain of Custody standard (in the Regulations section you can consult the relative Certification Regulation).
To find out about the certified companies, you can consult the FSC public database .
All the updated FSC legislation is instead available HERE .
KEY POINTS
The Chain of Custody certification according to FSC refers to products of forest origin, therefore to:- wood (roundwood, sawn timber, veneers, firewood, wood chips, etc.)
- wood-based products (panels, furniture, frames, pellets, etc.)
- wood derivatives such as cellulose pulp and paper (tissue, office, for printing, etc.)
- non-wood forest products – such as mushrooms, honey, berries, gums, resins, cork, etc. – as long as they come from correctly managed and certified forests as such
In addition to certified virgin material, products bearing the FSC mark can also contain recycled material and controlled wood : in this way, consumers are fully guaranteed as to the origin of the materials purchased.
COC certification can be:
- individual = of single organizations
- group = plus the possibility of obtaining multi-site certificates
- of individual projects = applicable for example to the building and construction sector, for which an ad hoc standard is envisaged
ADVANTAGES
The Forest Stewardship Council ® guarantees to certificate holders the use of the internationally recognized FSC® trademark .Certified products acquire a high distinctive and guarantee value , while the company increases its reputation by demonstrating its commitment to safeguarding forest resources and the planet's biodiversity and protecting the ethical and social values of forests.
The internal advantages are linked to the greater ability to control incoming raw materials and traceability in general.
FSC CoC certified companies are facilitated in responding to the new requests deriving from the EU-ETR legislation regarding internal traceability and the retrieval of information regarding the raw materials used.
To consult the FSC certification regulation click here