Become FSC-Certified

Forests are certified against a set of strict environmental and social standards, and fibre from certified forests is tracked all the way to the consumer through the chain of custody certification system.

Every company involved in the production, manufacture, trading and labeling of a product must be FSC certified for it to carry the FSC label.

All FSC certification audits are conducted by independent third-party auditors. Click here for list.

There are two types of FSC certification:

• Forest Management (FM) certification involves the inspection of a forest management unit by an independent FSC-accredited certification body. If the forest complies with FSC standards, it is issued a certificate. FSC-certified forests are managed to standards based on FSC’s ten Principles & Criteria.
• Chain of Custody (CoC) certification tracks the path taken by raw materials from the forest to the consumer. This includes all successive stages of processing, transformation, manufacturing and distribution

To become FSC certified you must:

1. Contact an FSC-accredited certifier
2. Submit an application to the certifier
3. Complete an on-site audit
4. Wait for certification approval
5. Conduct an annual audit

The length of time between application and receipt of certificate will depend on the type of certificate (FM or CoC) you are applying for, and the size of the company. Most CoC certificates are granted within 4 to 6 weeks after application. FM certificates will depend on the area to be certified and the public consultation requirements.

The cost of certification will depend on the location and size of the company or forest area.  Part of the fee is payed to the certifier for the auditor’s time and the application process, and a small program fee (starting at $10/yr) is payed to FSC's International Centre. Typically, certification for a medium sized business will range from $2,000 to $3,000.  There are also costs associated with the annual surveillance audit that all certified companies must undergo.

Certificates are valid for five years, at which time they may be renewed.

Once certification is approved, companies receive a unique Certificate number (e.g. AAA-COC-1234). The format for these Certification numbers are:

Initials of Certification Body  - Type of Certificate (FM or COC) – Identifying Number