Introduction to FSC forest certification

FSC forest certification, also known as timber certification, is a tool to promote sustainable forest management and achieve ecological, social and economic goals by using market mechanism.

FSC forest certification includes forest management (FM) and chain of custody (COC). The certification of forest management, also known as forest sustainable management certification or FSC forest certification for short, is a process for forest management units to review forest management performance by an independent third-party FSC forest certification agency according to the established forest management standards, in accordance with recognized principles and standards, to prove that it meets the requirements of sustainable management. The certification of production and marketing supervision chain is to identify all production links of wood processing enterprises, including the whole chain from the transportation, processing to circulation of logs, so as to ensure that the final products come from certified and well managed forests. After passing the certification, the enterprise has the right to mark the name and trademark of the certification system on its products, that is, the label of forest product certification.

In the past 20 years, deforestation and poor management of forests have resulted in a large-scale decline of forests, resulting in a lack of global forest resources, deteriorating ecological environment, and a serious threat to the living space of human beings. It is generally believed that the root causes of forest problems are policy mistakes, market failures and imperfect institutions. The international community, governments and non-governmental environmental protection organizations have expressed great concern and taken a series of actions, but the effect is not obvious.

It is generally believed that the root causes of forest problems are policy mistakes, market failures and imperfect institutions. The international community, governments and non-governmental environmental protection organizations have expressed great concern and taken a series of actions:

(1) National policy reform. Some countries have formulated and implemented the basic policies for the transformation to sustainable forest management, started to solve the existing problems in forestry, gave priority to the development of forestry and environmental protection.

(2) International intergovernmental process. To encourage and promote the sustainable development of forestry at the national level through international intergovernmental processes.



Requirements for FSC (COC) certification system



The purpose of FSC (COC) certification is to ensure that the raw materials for the production of labeled products are from the forest that has been audited and certified by FSC. FSC (COC) procedures must be performed at all key points such as when product ownership is transferred or when the product is significantly affected by the manufacturing process. Organizations involved in FSC (COC) certification need to establish a system that includes the following elements:

A. Organization and training

B. Procurement

C. Product identification and traceability

D. Process control

E. Handling, storage, packaging and delivery

F. Record

A. Organization and training

The organization needs to appoint a management representative who has the right and responsibility to ensure the implementation and maintenance of the COC system. All staff involved in the implementation of this certification program shall be qualified for work on the basis of appropriate education, training and practice. Staff training and practice records must be maintained within the appropriate operating range.

B. Procurement

The audited enterprise must have procedure documents for purchasing materials to make the source of materials easier to identify.

C. Product identification and traceability

The enterprise shall maintain the procedure documents for identifying products of specific source, shipment, bill of lading or other categories. Each batch / product must have a unique identification record.

D. Process control

The audited enterprise shall mark the production process of all woodwork processing involving materials from approved forests. The enterprise shall ensure that the raw materials can only be used for the production and processing of COC certified products after confirming that the raw materials are from the approved forest. And establish procedure documents to control these works.

E. Handling, storage, packaging and delivery

The audited enterprise shall record and maintain the procedure documents of product handling, storage, packaging and delivery. Safe storage areas shall be provided where necessary to prevent mixing of approved materials with materials from other sources. Label design shall be in accordance with FSC guidelines.

F. Record

The audited enterprise shall establish, implement and maintain the procedure documents for identifying, collecting, indexing, filling, storing, maintaining and disposing the records of its main activities according to the scope of operation. The product record shall be clear. The records must be comprehensive to trace the source of wood and wood products.