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Certification of forest products: effects and opportunities

Kit Prins Chief, Timber Branch UNECE Tade Development an Timber Division. Certification of forest products: effects and opportunities. What is certification of forest products? Background and history Present situation Main issues. Content of presentation.

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Certification of forest products: effects and opportunities

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  1. Kit Prins Chief, Timber Branch UNECE Tade Development an Timber Division Certification of forest products: effects and opportunities

  2. What is certification of forest products? Background and history Present situation Main issues Content of presentation

  3. CFPs bear labels demonstrating in a verifiable manner by independent bodies that come from forests that meet standards for sustainable forest management What are certified forest products?

  4. Concern about tropical deforestation Preparations for Rio 1992 (proposals for a Forest Convention) Issues of national sovereignty, accusations of neo-colonialism Foundation of Forest Stewardship Council, 1993 Early 1990s

  5. What is sustainable forest management (SFM), anyway? Does it vary between regions? Who defines SFM and how? Who certifies and controls? Who pays? What about WTO rules? Who wants to buy CFPs (and will they pay more)? Questions

  6. Development of FSC principles and infrastructure Intergovernmental dialogue (certification is “voluntary, market based, instrument”): causes of deforestation, plan of action … Regional processes for “criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management” Competitors to FSC Better understanding of commercial potential of certification Developments during the 1990s

  7. 124 million ha certified forest (90% in northern hemisphere) (3.2% of world’s forests) Competing certification systems Increasing consensus on what is “sustainable forest management” (incl. variations between regions) Lukewarm consumers, keen retailers Situation, mid-2002

  8. Bottleneck: chain of custody certificates Attempts to gain mutual recognition Motives: company image, competitive advantage Lead in north-west Europe, North America Usually no price premium, limited direct consumer demand Wide range of goods available, mostly FSC Situation, mid 2002 (cont.)

  9. Forest Stewardship Council (FSC): global, NGOs retailers, dominant in market place Pan-European Forest Certification System (PEFC): forest owners, European forest industry, largest forest area, group certification Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI), Canadian standards Association (CSA) Indonesian, Malaysian national systems Certifiers (SGS, SCS, …) The main players:

  10. Area of certified forest

  11. Is competition between systems confusing consumers? How can developing countries benefit from certification? Is certification of sustainable forest management too ambitious? Is certification of origin an adequate substitute? Need to resolve chain-of custody shortage Role of governments and public procurement? Issues

  12. Forest Certification Update for the UNECE Region, summer 2002 (ECE/TIM/DP/25) ECE/FAO market information service website: http://www.unece.org/trade/timber/mis/cfp.htm (with links) ECE/FAO Forest Products Annual Market Review Further information

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