FSC-CoC, PEFC - Forest Management System and Chain of Custody Products

1. GENERAL INFORMATION

What is FSC?

FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council – an international, non-governmental, and non-profit organization founded in 1993 in Toronto. Currently headquartered in Bonn, Germany, FSC was established to promote responsible forest management practices that are environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically viable.

FSC has developed a set of international standards for responsible forest management and has set up a system for accrediting certification bodies (third parties) that are authorized to assess and certify forest management organizations, as well as manufacturers and traders of forest-based products, in accordance with FSC standards.

To help consumers worldwide easily recognize products originating from responsibly managed forests, FSC logos and product labels serve as proof of oversight by FSC-accredited certification bodies.

FSC forest management principles are based on 10 core principles, including:

1. Compliance with laws and FSC principles
2. Tenure and use rights and responsibilities
3. Indigenous peoples’ rights
4. Community relations and workers’ rights
5. Benefits from the forest
6. Environmental impact
7. Management plan
8. Monitoring and assessment
9. Maintenance of high conservation value forests
10. Plantations

2. WHAT IS FSC CERTIFICATION?

FSC certification is the result of a formal assessment by an FSC-accredited certification body. Currently, there are two main types of FSC certification:

• FM (Forest Management) Certificate:
  Granted to forest areas that comply with FSC’s environmental, social, and economic standards for responsible forest management.
• CoC (Chain of Custody) Certificate:
  Granted to organizations that can demonstrate their products are sourced from FSC-certified materials and maintain traceability throughout the supply chain. Certified products may bear the FSC label and certification marks.

3. INTRODUCTION TO FSC-CoC

CoC (Chain of Custody) refers to the documented path that FSC-certified raw materials take from the forest to the final consumer. This includes all stages of harvesting, processing, transportation, manufacturing, and distribution.

The purpose of the FSC Chain of Custody certification is to provide verifiable evidence that products are derived from responsibly managed forests that meet FSC standards.

FSC STANDARDS APPLICABLE TO CoC CERTIFICATION

• FSC-STD-40-004 (Version 3-1) – Chain of Custody Certification Standard for companies supplying and processing FSC-certified products.
• FSC-STD-40-004a (Version 2-1) – Product Classification.
• FSC-STD-40-005 (Version 3-1) – Standard for Company Evaluation of FSC Controlled Wood Sources.
• FSC-STD-50-001 (Version 2-0) – Requirements for FSC Label Use on Products.

4. FSC LABELS

FSC labels correspond to specific types of claims made about the certified content of the product. These labels are used to communicate the origin of the material to consumers and ensure transparency across the supply chain.

FSC Label Components

Mandatory Elements

(*) Mandatory in certain cases

5. WHO NEEDS FSC-CoC CERTIFICATION?

All organizations, units, and businesses involved in the following activities should obtain FSC Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification:

• Timber harvesting and sourcing
• Wood processing (primary processing)
• Wood product manufacturing and refinement
  (including processing and/or printing of wood-based products)
• Distribution of wood and wood-based products