FSC certification

FSC Forest Management Certification

FSC strives for the world's forests to be managed more sustainably and encourages environmentally appropriate, socially responsible, and economically viable forest management practices worldwide. Being certified according to FSC's Forest Management certification (FM) means that forest holdings are managed in line with FSC's national indicators, which are an interpretation of FSC's principles and criteria.

The latest version of FSC's Swediash Forest Management standard came into effect on October 1, 2020.

Concrete rules

FSC's Forest Management standard includes specific rules for practices such as how many trees must be left during harvesting, the proportion of forest that must be excluded from harvesting, how deciduous trees should be protected, and the use of non-native tree species.

Five percent of the productive land certified by a forest owner must be set aside for conservation purposes, and an additional five percent must be designated or managed in a way that preserves or develops natural values or social interests.

FSC Chain of Custody Certification

Any company that processes, refines, or trades FSC-certified timber raw material and wants a product to be sold as certified must have a Chain of Custody (CoC) certificate. The certificate ensures that FSC-labeled products are made from raw material sourced from FSC-certified forestry or from recycled or controlled sources.

Our sawmills, pulp mills, liner production facilities, and pellet factories hold Chain of Custody certifications according to FSC (FSC^® C023232, FSC^® C013162).

FSC Controlled Wood

FSC’s standard for Controlled Wood is a complement to the Chain of Custody standard that allows FSC-certified material to be mixed with uncertified material, provided it is ensured that FSC-labeled products do not contain raw material from unacceptable sources.

Products containing both certified and uncertified material can be sold as FSC Mix. Products that only contain uncertified but controlled material can be sold as FSC CW.

Timber that is not accepted in FSC-labeled products (unacceptable sources):

• Illegally harvested timber
• Timber harvested in violation of traditional and human rights
• Timber from forests with high conservation values (if the harvesting threatens these values)
• Timber from large-scale conversion of forests to plantations or other land use
• Timber from forests with genetically modified tree species

All Chain of Custody-certified companies using the framework must conduct a risk assessment to minimize the risk of including timber from unacceptable sources in their products. For certain countries, national risk assessments approved by FSC International are available. For Sweden, a centralized national risk assessment has been developed.