PEFC Certification

PEFC (The Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) is a non-profit organization established in France with the desire to promote sustainable forest management through independent third party certification.

• FSC & PEFC standards: What's difference?

PEFC works throughout the product supply chain to promote good forest management practices and to ensure that timber and forest products are produced and rigorously adhere to ecological, social and ethical standards. Thanks to eco-labels, consumers can identify that forest products are managed sustainably.

PEFC is a sponsor organization. It works by supporting the development of a national forest certification system through a multi-stakeholder evaluation process that prioritizes suitability and local conditions.

With 38 approved national certification systems and more than 275 million hectares of certified forests, PEFC is the world's largest forest certification system.

By approving creative mechanisms for a group and a regional certification, PEFC supports smallholders to gain market recognition and thus contributes to the life and development of rural areas in the long-term. Until now, there are hundreds even thousands of families and communities and the owned forest areas have obtained PEFC certification.

1. PEFC forest standards are divided into two specific types of certificates:

• PEFC-FM (Forest Management certification): Certification of forest management. PEFC-FM certification for afforestation and harvesting units.
• PEFC- CoC (Chain of Custody certification): A certificate of the chain of custody products. PEFC - CoC certificate is for companies that process forest products. Certification of management systems for units produce, process and trade forest products.

1. What is PEFC-Coc certification?

Pefc - CoC certification: The PEFC chain of custody certification provides independently verified assurance that certified wood contained in a product is originated from well-managed forest areas. Besides, PEFC Accountability System (DDS) reduces the risk of timber that were harvested illegally and allows companies to demonstrate their compliance with mandatory regulations (e.g. European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR). DDS PEFC accountability system is a compulsory part of PEFC chain of custody certification.

To achieve this certificate, companies need to establish and apply processes for the purchase, sale, control, production, consumption, and storage of documents related to certified material.

1. PEFC label
2. Which units need the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)?

• PEFC can be applied to all organizations, regardless of their types, locations and sizes, etc.
• SFEs, farms, organizations, individuals, afforestation and exploitation units.
• Units in charge of transporting and processing forest products (the processing of forest products)

1. Benefits of achieving PEFC – The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)

• Environmental value: PEFC certification contributes to environmental and ecosystem preservation.
• Social value: PEFC certificate demonstrates an organization's responsibility to the society.
• Economic value: PEFC certification is to minimize waste of forest resources. PEFC labeled products have a high economic value. According to statistics, PEFC certified products have an economic value of about 20-30%, which is higher than that of conventional products.
• Brand value: Achieving PEFC certification will enhance your brand, you can use PEFC labels to promote your products’s marketing activities.

1. Steps to achieve The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)

Step 1: Contact KNA CERT and provide necessary information on wood planting and logging. KNA will prepare procedures and inform you of PEFC certification’s costs.

Step 2: Conduct certification audits. After agreeing with arranged time, KNA CERT and partners will conduct the assessment.

Step 3: After working with KNA CERT and partners, if your activities meet PEFC requirements, you will have a PEFC certificate.

PEFC certificate is valid within 5 years, KNA CERT will conduct an annual monitoring assessment to assess your organization's compliance with PEFC requirements (4 times of monitoring assessment within 5 years)