What is the difference between FSC® and PEFC certification

What is the difference between FSC® and PEFC certification

We have recently received quite a few enquiries from clients asking what is the difference between FSC® and PEFC certification?

Ultimately they have the same aim and that is to ensure that forest based products are responsibly sourced.

However they cover separate areas of forest throughout the world and they cannot be mixed at any point.

How do I know whether I need FSC® and PEFC certification?

Your first port of call would be your suppliers and the clients you are selling to.

Firstly, some customers have a special requirement. This may mean that they are only willing to accept forest based products from one of these schemes.

Secondly, FSC® and PEFC certification are both also referred to as a Chain of Custody. This means that every link in the chain from forest to end user must be certified in order for the claim to continue.

If there is a break within the chain or your suppliers are not certified, then you in turn would not be able to apply for certification.

This is primarily down to tractability, which ensures that the products are from responsible sources.

What is the process of obtaining certification?

Firstly do you have a Chain of Custody Management System in place for an audit to be conducted against? If not you will either need to put this information together, or you will need to bring a consultant in to do so for you.

Unfortunately as an Accredited Certification Body we are not able to assist you with this as it is a conflict of interests. We would be marking our own homework which is simply not allowed.

Once you have this in place you can then contact a Certification Body such as Interface who will come and conduct an audit against the system.

This week

This week we have been appointed to provide FSC® and PEFC certification to a company who are based in Liverpool.

Further information

You can also find further information about this on our website.