For more visit: FSC-certified forests - Facts & Figures

FSC Certification in Canada

For more facts and figures please click here. 

Canada is the world leader in FSC certification.

• Over 20% of the world's FSC-certified forests are in Canada;
• The largest FSC-certification, 5.5 million ha is in Alberta, Canada;
• Four regionally specific forest management standards; National Boreal, British Columbia, Great Lakes St. Lawrence, Maritimes.

FSC certification is creating positive ecological and social change in our forests and for our communities.

• 2 million ha (62 million acres) of Canadian forests are FSC-certified, which represents 15% of Canada's managed forests;
• Since 2005, the area of FSC-certified forest in Canada has quintupled (from 4.4 M ha to 25 M ha);
• Aboriginal Peoples, local communities and stakeholders have a say in how forests are managed, and their rights and responsibilities are respected;
• 780,000 ha of forests have been set aside by the forest industry to be transformed into protected areas.

Demand for FSC-certified products is driving the growth in FSC certification.

• In 2007, all six major Canadian banks used, or committed to use, FSC-certified paper for their annual accountability reports;
• Major companies and institutions have put in place procurement policies stating a preference for FSC-certified products. Dell Inc., Victoria Secret, Williams Sonoma, Alberta Ministry of Environment, Home Depot, Ikea, Kodak, LL Bean, Lowes, Nike, and Norm Thompson to name a few.
• As of July 2008, over 400 print locations are FSC-certified (299 individual certificates), and over 200 lines of FSC-paper are available;
• Domtar, manufacturer of the EarthChoice® line of papers, experienced a 100% growth in FSC-certified paper sales from 2006 to 2007;
• In 2007, Scholastic Inc. de the largest commitment ever to FSC-certified paper for the printing of the final Harry Potter book, 22 million lbs of paper.

Environmental and social groups identify FSC as the best thing we can do for our forests.

• “FSC has the highest environmental standard for forest management of any certification system in the world.” Monte Hummel, President, World Wildlife Fund Canada
• “The Nature Conservancy believes that FSC is curently the most rigorous forest management standard currently operating in the global arena.” Frances Price, Director of Forest Certification, The Nature Conservancy
• “FSC certification offers the only credible and independent assurance of good forestry in Canada.” Rachel Plotkin, Director of National Forests and Biodiversity Program, Sierra Club of Canada
• “[…] FSC has contributed significantly to developing processes that require meaningful dialogue between Aboriginal communities and the forest industry.”  Lorraine Rekmans, Executive Director of the National Aboriginal Forestry Association.
• "FSC is one of the most valuable tools we have for improving forest practices and protecting Canada's natural forests […].“  Anne Levesque, National Executive Director, CPAWS