Do you as a printer have the ability to add an FSC logo to your print job if requested by a customer? Scientist Dr Chris Goulding looks at what is involved in obtaining an FSC Chain of Custody certificate
Sustainable forest management has become a global issue with consumers demanding green wood products and paper that originate from well managed forests. Environmental concerns, especially those of illegal and indiscriminate logging, have been translated by forest certification into market signals that affect the print industry.
The two most common internationally recognised forest management certification schemes, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC), each have a Chain of Custody (CoC) certification scheme that follows wood from the forest to the consumer to verify claims at each stage of the production chain.
When a book publisher or a company commissioning the printing of a report or brochure wishes to demonstrate its commitment to forest sustainability by using certified paper, it can request that the printer add a certification label to a prominent page. To be able to do so, as trademarks are strictly enforced, the printer must not only correctly source the paper, but must have CoC certification to demonstrate that appropriate control systems are in place. The FSC owns the trademarks to the initials ‘FSC’, to the words ‘Forestry Stewardship Council’, and the FSC logo.
In New Zealand, the most popular forest management certificate is FSC. The forest industry is now almost entirely based on 1.8 million hectares of Radiata pine exotic plantations, divided into approximately two thirds corporate and one third private forests. Over one million hectares are now FSC certified and the number of New Zealand processing, trading and printing companies with FSC CoC certificates is rapidly rising. Much of the remaining uncertified area is in woodlots not managed by professional foresters and the benefits of certification at present do not outweigh the costs for such small ownerships.
Paper made from wood-fibre that comes entirely from FSC certified forests is labelled as ‘FSC 100 percent’. Wood from the non-certified forests is often incorporated with certified fibre either from a mix of wood chips at the pulping process, or from wood-pulp when making the paper. The non-certified wood, termed ‘FSC controlled wood’, has stringent conditions imposed on its source before the paper so produced can be termed ‘FSC mixed sources’ and an FSC label printed. Additionally, there is a label for paper made using recycled fibre.
To be able to print the FSC logo on a book or document, a printer must gain certification and follow FSC Standard for Chain of Custody Certification, FSC-STD-40-004 (Version 2-0). It must be evaluated by an accredited FSC certification body that it has systems in place to ensure a correct FSC claim for each printed product.
Chain of custody is passed via the invoice and transport documents. A printer must be invoiced with the correct FSC description from its paper supplier (who must also hold a CoC certificate). It must segregate and appropriately control the use of the FSC product during printing and must use the correct wording on its own invoices and any transport documentation. A transfer control system is most often used by printers, whereby the paper supplier’s FSC claim determines the type of FSC label to be printed and the same wording from their invoice is transferred to the invoice from the printer. An auditor will check this, usually once a year, and will check there is no likelihood that ordering, storing and using different papers results in labelling inappropriately. Most printers have strict job control systems and they can readily graft procedures for an FSC control system onto the systems with a few extra details.
Many companies now view environmental marketing as an opportunity to promote their business. As the number of environmentally aware consumers increases, marketing decisions concerning certification are now impacting business and, ultimately, forest management. Publishers and printers can do their bit towards sustainable and responsible forest management.
About the certification systems
FSC was officially established in 1994, based in Mexico, following discussions by a “group of timber users, traders and representatives of environmental and human-rights organizations who had identified the need for an honest and credible system for identifying well-managed forests as acceptable sources of forest products”. It moved to Bonn, Germany in 2002 and has striven to comply with ISO principles and practices, particularly with the more procedural CoC standards.
PEFC was founded in Europe in 1999 to provide for the mutual recognition of national forest certification schemes. Each national scheme defines its own methods of determining accreditation, subject to overall approval by the General Assembly of PEFC. Both PEFC and FSC require independent audits carried out by accredited certifying bodies. Implementation of the necessary mechanisms within a company requires detailed management systems in line with established standards such as ISO 9001 (quality management systems) or ISO 14001 (environmental management systems).
Andrew Tribute
